It’s officially Lent and for Christians it is a time of repentance and also a period of grief as it builds to the celebration of Easter and the resurrection of Christ. Every year when the time rolls around for Lent, I try to decide if I will give up something as a sacrifice or add a spiritual discipline to my life. This year I have been a little more than a little lax in deciding what to do and I guess I have decided that my spiritual discipline will be using a specific Lenten journey devotional every day.
Some years I have written cards and letters to people as part of my practice, some years I have given up sweet tea or chocolate, some years I have added some type of donation to a charity while giving up Starbucks . But whatever I do or don’t do, the real thing that I realize that I need to focus on is the whole reason we observe Lent and the meaning.
Chris and I usually get the imposition of ashes on our foreheads on Ash Wednesday. I actually saw a really good article about Mark Wahlberg where he explained why he gets ashes on his forehead and how his faith has guided him throughout his life. When a Hollywood person shares their faith in such a straight forward way it is refreshing. He’s not forcing it on anyone but he gratefully acknowledges that it is indeed a vital part of his life.
Chris and I were in New Jersey last week to help out with a little bit of babysitting and we happened to be there on Ash Wednesday. I did not find a local place to get ashes but our sweet grandson, who loves monster trucks, decided to bless us with stickers on our foreheads. So while we did not have ashes on our foreheads we had monster truck stickers on our foreheads and for this year I think God smiled on that non traditional practice.
Sometimes the things that we give up or add to our lives have a purpose and a meaning and this Lent I am just going to try to be productive in my actions and focus on service to others. What about you? If you observe Lent, what are your practices? I would love to hear all about them.
