As I sit to write this letter, the sun is shining! I don’t how long it will last, but I am enjoying it in the meantime!
We are now a little way into the season of Lent, a season of reflection and preparation as we journey with Jesus towards the events of Holy Week. It is a season which somehow seems to surprise me, even though there has been pancake mix and Easter Eggs in the shops since the beginning of January.
Perhaps it is because Lent doesn’t start with a huge fanfare, as the world does not really acknowledge the six weeks between Shrove Tuesday and Easter Sunday, between pancakes and chocolate eggs. But for us as Christians, those six weeks are significant.
We often talk about Lent in terms of what we’re giving up maybe chocolate or social media. I remember our son choosing to give up sleeping in a bed with the idea of identifying with those who had nowhere to sleep. The fact that he made a very ‘comfortable’ place to sleep with pillows and a warm duvet both underneath and on top of him rather than a cardboard box or pop-up tent in the garden, seemed irrelevant!
‘Giving up’ can be meaningful, but that isn’t really the point. Lent isn’t about proving our willpower or making life harder for six weeks. It’s more like a pause button, an opportunity to make more room for God in our everyday lives. Unlike Advent, Lent doesn’t rush us, it is an invitation to slow down and reflect on our discipleship. It is an invitation to be still, notice and listen for God’s voice. And when we do those things, we inevitably turn to our need for forgiveness and grace as we come before God to confess our waywardness, asking for his help, his strength as we continue our journey of faith.
In our churches and perhaps in our bible reading notes and studies, we will be travelling with Jesus towards the Mount of Olives and the events of Holy Week. We will hear of time spent in the wilderness, of Jesus talking with Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman and time spent with Mary and Martha and, amongst all of this, Jesus telling his disciples all that was to happen, even if they couldn’t understand or want to believe it.
This Lent I encourage you to spend more time with these stories and travel with Jesus on his journey to the cross so that you are ready to shout, ‘alleluia the Lord is risen!’ in just a few weeks’ time. Don’t jump from pancakes to chocolate, instead take some time to be still and engage with God’s word. In this way Lent won’t be about simply giving up, but of growing into a deeper relationship God.
Wishing you every blessing,
Sally