Lent is a season of reflection and repentance. It invites us to look inside our hearts, seeing ourselves with compassion and truth — to see both our brokenness and our beauty, our failings and our faithfulness. In this season we’re inviting you to enter into a deeper commitment to the way of Jesus.
Traditionally Lent has been a time of fasting, allowing the fast to enter into our lives as a call to prayer. You might fast from coffee — each morning being reminded that you are to be filled and energized with God’s blessings; you might fast from television — reminded to go outside and take in the drama and beauty of creation; or you might fast from fast food — reminding yourself to slow down and think about the source of our sustenance as you prepare your own meals. As the fast interrupts our normal way of being, we are reminded to be in prayer.
Another way of marking the season is through the addition of a spiritual discipline. You might read one of the gospels each week, getting to know Jesus more intimately. You could commit to praying daily for your classmates, family or the world. You might want to commit to an act of service to the least among us — serving at a homeless shelter, visiting a local nursing home, writing to someone lonely, raising money for those affected by the hurricane.
Let us this day commit together to keep this Lenten season holy. Set it apart from other times, to make of ourselves, our very lives, an offering to our gracious and loving God. Let us take up our crosses and follow Jesus.
