From the Pastor
February/March 2004
Thoughts on Lent
"Create in me a clean heart, 0 God, and put a new and right spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain in me a willing spirit." (Psalm 5 1:10-12)
Such familiar words from one of the most-read books in our Bible. We sing them each Sunday in worship as the gifts of God and our gifts to God are brought forward to the altar. Yet how often do we take the time to reflect on these words?
The season of Lent will soon be upon us. Lent is the traditional time in the church year where inner reflection becomes a daily ritual. Some Christians choose to give up something in their lives (chocolate, fatty foods, television, etc), and use the time spent on those activities for prayer and contemplation. Some Christians view Lent as a time when daily prayer is required. All in all, a practice of spiritual discipline is strongly encouraged during the season of Lent, perhaps more so than any other time in the church year.
Setting aside time during Lent for spiritual contemplation and growth is a wonderful idea. Kudos to whomever thought of such a practice! However, Lent is only one of six seasons in our liturgical calendar. What about spiritual discipline and spiritual growth during the other five seasons? My answer to the question is: Lent presents us with the perfect opportunity to begin our journey of spiritual growth! That leaves us five other seasons to continue to grow in our faith in Jesus Christ, just to begin again come next Ash Wednesday. What Good News!
Throughout this coming Lenten season, and beyond, I encourage you to develop and strengthen your faith through a regular practice of spiritual discipline. This can be through a set time of day devoted only to prayer, or to daily Bible reading, or taking a walk spending time with God in God’s good creation. There are many different ways to devote time to God, and each can be adapted to fit your personal lifestyle and hobbies.
If you have not already developed a habit of spiritual discipline, I encourage you to begin now. If you are one who regularly devotes time to God and growth in faith, goo for you! I encourage you to experiment with different and new ideas to strengthen your relationship with God.
One of the most important pieces of keeping a spiritual discipline is accountability. I encourage you to ask each other how things are going. I encourage you to ask your pastor (!) how her spiritual discipline is going. We all (including your pastor) struggle to balance busy lives with finding time for God. By working together in this new journey, I am certain that individual lives of faith will become stronger, and as a result, our faith as a community in Christ will shine forth for all the world to see.
If God is for us, who is against us?’ (Romans 8:31)
0 Zion, haste, your mission high fufilling. (‘LBW 397)