Lent began this week. What first comes to mind when you hear the word Lent? Is kindness the word? Probably not. I know I think of fasting, giving up something I really like. Thats why Mardi-Gras or “Fat Tuesday” is celebrated the day before Ash Wednesday. People go to all sorts of excesses to have “fun” before they begin a season of going without.
Lent is not meant to be a dark season of deprivation. It is a season of self-examination in preparation for Good Friday and Easter. We are invited to think about how we can be kinder than we have been, and to remember why Jesus had to be scourged within an inch of his life before he died on the Cross to carry all our unrighteousness away from us. It positions us to be thankful.
What does the Bible say about fasting? Isaiah 58:3-10 [NLT] records a conversation with our Creator and people us what it is, after he tells us what it is not. Look for motivations we may have for fasting.
‘We have fasted before you!’ they say.
‘Why aren’t you impressed?
We have been very hard on ourselves,
and you don’t even notice it!’
“I will tell you why!” I respond.
“It’s because you are fasting to please yourselves.
Even while you fast,
you keep oppressing your workers.
What good is fasting
when you keep on fighting and quarreling?
This kind of fasting
will never get you anywhere with me.
5You humble yourselves
by going through the motions of penance,
bowing your heads
like reeds bending in the wind.
You dress in burlap
and cover yourselves with ashes.
Is this what you call fasting?
Do you really think this will please the Lord.
Why are these people fasting? Please don’t rush through this. Look again. Does any of that resonate? I may not dress in burlap but sometimes I have been like the old adage, “I am sitting down on the outside, but I am standing up on the inside.” There are times I have definitely made myself miserable fasting. I tried to earn things from God, but Jesus came so we would not have to. So how can we fast better? Isaiah continues:
“No, this is the kind of fasting I want:
Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;
lighten the burden of those who work for you.
Let the oppressed go free,
and remove the chains that bind people.
Share your food with the hungry,
and give shelter to the homeless.
Give clothes to those who need them,
and do not hide from relatives who need your help.
“Then your salvation will come like the dawn,
and your wounds will quickly heal.
Your godliness will lead you forward,
and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind.
Then when you call, the Lord will answer.
‘Yes, I am here,’ he will quickly reply.
“Remove the heavy yoke of oppression.
Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!
Feed the hungry,
and help those in trouble.
Then your light will shine out from the darkness,
and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon.
If you do not already have ideas of what you can do for lent, read it again. Maybe clean out a closet and give the clothes to Salvation Army or a homeless shelter or help serve a meal at one. Have a dinner party! Invite people you know who are struggling to make ends meet. These are some of the things I am considering for this lenten season. Are any of the things Abba shows you things you can do beyond Lent? (Just asking)
Most of all, I hope to use these 40 days to contemplate and put into practice Philippians 2:3-4: “Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.”
How about you? I would love to hear how Abba is leading you.
Thank you for these wonderful reminders for Lent.
Praying for direction as to what Abba would have me do for Lent.