According to Wikipedia, Lent is "the Christian observance of the liturgical year from Ash Wednesday to Holy Thursday." You probably recognize it as the season before Easter. The purpose of Lent (again according to Wikipedia) is "the penitential preparation of the believer - through prayer, penance, repentance, almsgiving, and self-denial." OK, a season of preparation; but for what are we preparing? According to the United Methodist Church website, we are preparing "for the coming of Easter." Our Sunday Visitor (a Catholic publication) concurs.
We prepare ourselves for the joyful celebration of Christ's resurrection, by first making a feeble attempt to understand His suffering and death. I know I can't possibly understand the magnitude of the Lord's suffering on my behalf, yet Lent is the season in which I'm asked to try. What would it really be like to be beaten within an inch of our lives, to be forced to carry a heavy crossbeam on our own death march, to be pierced with nails so that we hang in unimaginable pain, barely able to gasp for breath, and left to die? What would it be like in our dying breaths to feel completely forsaken by our family, friends, and even God? I simply can't begin to imagine.
In our human frailty, we attempt various forms of personal sacrifice. We may give up something meaningful to us for a period of just more than 40 days. We may set aside a little "extra" for the poor, the homeless, and the otherwise needy. We may also try to draw nearer to God through honest reflection and repentance, through prayer, devotional reading, or other daily disciplines. Good practices, one and all, but none that will compare to Christ's suffering for us.
And then... After all the suffering, all the pain, and a death that seemed so very final, there is cause for utmost joy and celebration. The tomb is empty, the graveclothes set aside. There is new light and new life. Death doesn't win!
To whom does Easter mean the most? Those that have sacrificed little or those who have given all they have? This Lenten season perhaps we should consider a deeper sacrifice. Whatever our practice has been in the past, maybe we can step it up a notch. The more we understand the Lord's suffering, the more joy we will have in understanding His resurrection.
Questions: Rather than giving up candy, caffeine, desserts, what if we gave up gossip, anger, or envy? Rather than providing an additional offering for the needy, what if we spent our time serving at a homeless shelter or sharing a conversation and a hug with the homebound? Rather than taking up a new devotional, what if we made it our practice to share God's Word with others? Can we "stay awake" for 40 days? The end - or rather the new beginning - will certainly be worth it!
God's peace to each of you during this Lenten season.
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