Out of the Ashes (February 21, 2021)

Ash Wednesday.  The beginning of Lent.  The start of the Easter season.  The day where a large number of folks typically walk around with some type of smudge on their forehead.  If you’re not prepared for it, those smudges can cause you a moment’s pause, and raise a concern, “Uh, ma’am, I’m sorry to bother you, but I think you missed with the mascara this morning.  You have a little something right there.”  Hopefully, this has not been your experience, but it is a possibility…especially if you grew up in a church tradition that did not focus on Ash Wednesday very much.  For many, Ash Wednesday can catch us off guard.  After all, we’re not really used to people walking around with the smudges.  It just seems so abnormal, so odd.

And yet…

Ash Wednesday stands as a reminder of what is true, of who we are, of what we are.

Though we may not always walk around with ashes on our heads, Ash Wednesday serves as a marker, as a signpost, as a reminder of the truth that we share on this day.  

From dust you’ve come.  To dust you shall return.

Ashes to ashes.

Dust to dust.

We don’t often think about it.  We don’t always like it, but Ash Wednesday stands as a reminder year after year that you, my friend, like me, are dust.  Dirt.  Plain, old, ordinary, common ash.  Not only is that our origin, our start, but it is also our destiny, what will come.  One day, our bodies, will return to the dirt, will return to the ashes, will return to the soil.  It is part of who we are, and it is part of what we will be.

From dust you’ve come.  To dust you shall return.

It’s pretty sobering when you think about it.  Typically, this idea is not in the forefront of my mind.  I usually have a higher regard for myself.  I don’t often wake up in the morning, look in the mirror and think, “Hey there you big ol’ pile of dirt, you’re looking like you could use a little watering, some fertilizer, maybe a good plowing would take care of you.”  No, this is not usually how I see myself in the mirror or how I view myself throughout the day.  And yet, Ash Wednesday rolls around, and I’m reminded.

From dust I’ve come.  To dust I shall return.

Ashes to ashes.

Dust to dust.

Ash Wednesday grounds me as it points me to our origin, to the beginning, it reminds me of the truth that is found in Genesis 2:7.  “Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground…”  

Want to know what I am, where I come from?  I am dirt.  Ashes.  Common.  Ordinary.  Nothing special.  Dirt.  Want to know where I’m headed (at least in terms of my physical body)?  Same place.  Back to the dirt.  Back to the earth.  I don’t know when that might take place, but it will happen for each of us (unless Jesus comes beforehand).

But that’s not all.  

Ash Wednesday also reminds me of another characteristic of my nature, that I am fallen, that I have sinned, that I have come up short.  Not only am I created out of the dust, but as dust, I have disobeyed my Creator.  I have gone my own path.  I have desired things that are contrary to God’s law, that fly in the face of God’s plan, that are against God’s love.  Once again, Ash Wednesday stands as a marker, a signpost, a reminder of my nature.

In the Bible, ashes were used as a sign of repentance.  When someone (or groups of people) were convicted of their sin and wanted to show that they have turned from sin to God, they would use ashes to indicate this change.  For example, whenever Jonah preached the word of God to the Ninevites, they demonstrated their repentance by covering themselves in ashes (Jonah 3:5-7).  They demonstrated their remorse, their sorrow, their guilt, and their repentance with this act of ashes. 

For us, the symbol of the ashes is a reminder that we, too, are in need of repentance.  We need to repent of the physical acts that we have done that are sinful.  We need to repent of the thoughts that we have entertained and have adopted that are sinful.  We also need to recognize and repent that we are sinful by nature, that it is part of our inheritance, that there is part of us that is broken and in need of healing, that we have all fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).  The ashes of Ash Wednesday serve as a reminder not only that we are made from dirt and that we will return to dirt, but also that we are dirt in need of repentance.

If that weren’t enough, Ash Wednesday can give us even more.  Not only did people in the Bible use ashes as a sign of repentance, but they were also used as a sign of grief, a sign of mourning.  The ashes, that someone would place on their head, were an outward indication of an inward state.  If you saw someone covered in ashes, you knew that they were mourning, that they were grieving, (or that they were repenting).  You knew that there was something going on deep within their heart, and the ashes were a way to express that emotion, to share in that grief.  This expression could take place individually, like when Tamar was mourning the way she had been horribly mistreated (2 Samuel 13:19), or when Job befell all of his misfortune and expressed that outwardly by covering himself in ashes (Job 16:15-17).  It could also take place as a group, like when this depiction is given as a response to great tribulation and grief in Lamentations:  

The elders of Daughter Zion sit on the ground in silence; they have sprinkled dust on their heads and put on sackcloth.  The young women of Jerusalem have bowed their heads to the ground. 

~ Lamentations 2:10

In these and other cases, the ashes applied to the outside of the body demonstrated what was going on inside the person’s heart and spirit.  When others saw the ashes, they knew that something was going on, that there was a reason the person was expressing themselves in that manner.  The ashes were an indication of grief, or suffering, or repentance.

Currently, when we see the ashes of Ash Wednesday (even if we don’t actually see any physical ashes on Ash Wednesday this year), we, too, can be reminded of the reality of grief and our need to express it.  Life does not always work out perfectly.  Things do not always go along as planned.  Sometimes, we will each face and go through seasons that are incredibly difficult, disheartening, disappointing, sorrowful, painful, hurtful, etc., etc., etc.  Ash Wednesday can remind us that it is OK for us to express those feelings.  Not only is it OK, but it is also necessary.  We need to address the brokenness that we face in this world, the sorrow that is a result, and we need to honestly deal with our grief, our pain, our suffering.  Though we may not cover our heads with or sit in the ashes as people did during biblical times, Ash Wednesday reminds us that authentic expressions of grief and mourning are appropriate and good.

Let’s be honest.  So far, this Ash Wednesday reflection has been kind of a downer.  To summarize, I’ve reminded us that we are all made of dirt.  Not only that, but I’ve reminded us that our physical bodies will return to the dirt.  What else?  Oh yeah.  I’ve reminded us that we are sinful dirt in need of repenting.  Plus, I’ve reminded us that life can be painful, that we will all grieve and mourn, and that we should find means to express that grief and mourning.  This really hasn’t been a super peppy read to this point!

Fortunately, God does not leave us in any of these states.

Genesis 2:7 read, Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground…”. It continues, “and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life…”  Yes, we were made from dust, but not dust alone.  God breathed into each of us.  The very breath of life comes from God, the Creator, the Lord Almighty.  We are not left as dust alone.  Instead, we are given more, we are given life, the very breath of God.

The Ninevites?  The ones who were facing destruction because of their wickedness?  After their repentance, look at how God responds:  “When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.” (Jonah 3:10). The repentance brought about a change, a change in the Ninevites' attitudes, behaviors and feelings as well as a change in the plans of God.  God had planned on consequences.  God relented when the Ninevites' hearts were softened.  Forgiveness came after repentance.  Forgiveness is offered to us as well when we repent.

Job?  A man who spent a good period of time in grief, in mourning, in ashes.  Look at what Job 42:12 says:  “The Lord blessed the latter part of Job’s life more than the former part.”  God did not keep him in mourning for the entirety of his life.  Instead, he received an even larger blessing from the Lord.

Plus, there is this as a reminder for all those who may grieve:

“For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.”

~ Psalm 30:5

Oh, and lest we forget, though we are perishing, though our bodies are going to return to dust, return to the dirt, return to the ashes (unless of course Jesus returns before that happens), that is not our final status.  We’re not just destined to be a heap of nothingness.  Instead, for those who have put their lives into the hands of Jesus, God promises the following:

“And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.”                                                   

~ Philippians 3:19-20

The final design for us?  Mere ashes?  Just dust?  No!  Out of the ashes the Lord Jesus Christ will transform us to be like him.  Let me say that again.  Out of the ashes the Lord Jesus Christ will transform us to be like him!!!  

Or as Paul says, 

“The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable;  it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power;  it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.” 

~ 1 Corinthians 15:42-44

Yes, friend, Ash Wednesday is a welcome reminder of who we are, that we are dust, that we are fallen, that we grieve, and that we will one day return to the dust.  But, it is even a better reminder of Whose we are, and that in Jesus we are given life, that we are forgiven, that our tears will be wiped away, and that we will live eternally with him.

  ~ Pastor Chris

Will You Be My Valentine (February 14, 2021)

I can still remember the little cards that I’d take to school.  Small little perforated rectangles, enough that I would have one for every student and maybe a little larger one for the teacher.  Though I can’t remember specifically, I imagine that my young self would have chosen cards with something cool on them…like Optimus Prime from the cartoon series Transformers.  He’d be on the front, looking all awesome, saying something like “Autobots Roll Out & Have Yourself a Happy Valentine’s Day!”  (If you don’t have a clue what I’m talking about here, I apologize…I always try to have people connect to my devotionals, but sometimes I add some things just because it makes me smile.  The Transformers reference is one of those times.)  No mushy gunk from me.  No white and pink cupcakes with “love” written on them.  No extra-special cards.  No specially-selected-heart-shape-candy with “just the right” message on them, given to just the right person.  Not my style.  Not my thing.  Nope.  Each person got an Optimus Prime card, and even that was probably done out of obligation more than some extra feelings of love happening around the holiday.

As a kid, Valentine’s Day was just not my thing.  Sure, I’d be glad for an excuse to eat a couple of extra pieces of candy, but be excited about it?  Get all mushy about it?  Nah.  Not going to happen.

At this point, perhaps you’re expecting for me to say that things have changed now that I’m older.  Perhaps this is the point of the devotional where you think I’ll say, “But that’s all different now!”

Honestly, I’m not going to say that.

Valentine’s Day is still not my thing!  I’m still not super excited about it.  I still don’t buy dozens of roses, make cupcakes with “love” written all over them, or look for those heart-shaped candies with the messages.  (I still don’t mind the extra excuse to eat a piece or two of chocolate.)

Now, before you start throwing stones, let me do some explaining.  Let me do some defending.  Let me lay out my story and my logic, and then let’s see where we end up.  Ok?  Great.

Here’s the deal.  I love my wife.  A ton.  My goal?  To live my life in such a way that she feels loved and appreciated all of the time!  Now, I certainly do not succeed in this endeavor.  There are plenty of times when I fail to express my feelings, where I fail to show up, where I fail in making her feel loved and appreciated.  Still, that is the goal.  That she would be confident in our relationship.  That she would know that I love her.  That I would express my love to her consistently.  That I would be there for her and for her needs.  And, that I wouldn’t need Valentine’s Day as an excuse to make up for a year’s worth of shortcomings.  “Honey, I know I was a pretty terrible husband for the rest of the year…eat some chocolates and enjoy a new necklace.  Happy Valentine’s Day!”  Ok.  I’m being a little over-cynical.  Still, the point remains.  I want for my wife to know how much I love and value her all of the time.  Not just on one day.

Here’s the second half of the deal.  I also know my wife (hopefully pretty well, but there’s always room for growth!), and I know that typical “Valentine’s Day” things would not come across as an expression of love to her.  Let’s go through some of them, shall we?

• Heart-shaped box of chocolates?  She’s not a fan of chocolate.  Occasionally a chocolate-covered potato chip.  Once in a while a white chocolate Lindor truffle.  That box of chocolates would be for me.  Not her.
• Roses?  Not her favorite flower in the least.  She prefers daisies or wildflowers or an occasional single flower in a simple vase.  A dozen roses would benefit the flower shop.  Not my wife.
• Earrings/necklaces/jewelry?  Again, nope.  Her ears aren’t pierced.  She enjoys wearing two rings (engagement/wedding), and she typically doesn’t wear much jewelry.  Buying this type of gift would not show her that I love her.
• Cupcakes with “love” written on them?  Well, one, she has to eat gluten-free.  Two, she doesn’t like cupcakes.  Again, this would be a gift for me, not her.
• A fancy, romantic dinner?  Know one of her favorite meal scenarios?  Chinese and a movie at home.  Another favorite?  The three of us at a Mexican restaurant.  A third?  Some Thai food.  If I surprised her with Vallozzi’s?  Not going to cut it.  Why?  That’s not what she likes.  

Here are my problems with Valentine’s Day, and I have two to discuss.  

First, it, like many other holidays, has become an over-commercialized marketing push for people to spend more money.  If I followed the typical “Valentine’s Day guide,” I’d have an unhappy wife who would wonder what on earth was wrong with me.  She doesn’t want chocolate or cupcakes or roses or jewelry or expensive Italian meals or even those pop-up cards that sing songs.  She wants me to show her that I know her and that I love her.  Does she want me to show her that on Valentine’s Day?  Yes, absolutely.  I hope to show her, specifically on that day.  More importantly, does she want me to show her that on every other calendar day of the year?  Yes, absolutely.  I hope to show her that on every other day of the year as well.  I don’t need to buy into all of the marketing or hype or commercialization associated with February 14.  I need to know my wife, to spend time with her, to listen to her, to pray with her, to be there for her, to commit to her, to love her.  That, to me, is more important than following all of the typical, Valentine’s Day stuff.

Here’s my second problem with Valentine’s Day.  It has a way of making people focus on the wrong goal and feel bad when they do not achieve it.

I still remember that feeling associated with getting fewer cards than other people.  I still remember looking around and feeling shorted on my candy count, or on not getting the “Will you be my Valentine?” question, or on not having a “special someone” for the holiday.  You see, Valentine’s Day holds up an ideal, that of romantic love, of having a partner, of feeling like you are special because of that one person who says that you are special.  But what happens when that ideal isn’t reached?  What happens when you’re not the most popular kid in your grade and other people receive more cards than you?  Or, what happens when you don’t receive any cards at all?  What happens when you are alone?  On Valentine’s Day?  When you’ve never had a special someone to call your own?  Or, when there have been problems in your relationship and you’re feeling distance?  Or, when your special someone is no longer with you, when they’ve gone to meet Jesus, and your life has changed so drastically?  What happens to Valentine’s Day then?

That’s my issue.  As we understand it and celebrate it, Valentine’s Day sets up this picture-perfect ideal of romantic love.  But what about those who do not have it?  What about those who have never experienced romantic love in this life or for people who no longer have their partner?  Are those folks somehow worth less because they are not married?

The relationship that I share with Christa is 100000000% a blessing from God.  I am incredibly blessed and thankful to share my life with her.  However, even that relationship, even my relationship with my best friend who is also my wife, even that cannot be the peak, cannot be the pinnacle, cannot be the ideal or the place in which I find my worth.  There has to be more.  There has to be something that goes beyond romantic love, something that goes deeper than finding your “partner,” something that is a loftier goal than even the good that romantic love has to offer.  On Valentine’s Day (or any other day for that matter) romantic love cannot be the primary goal, cannot be the ideal, nor should our worth be based on whether or not we have found this love and met this ideal.

Instead, we need a different kind of love.  Love that comes straight from God.  We need the love of Jesus.

Valentine’s Day, much like any other day, needs to be rooted in Christ, grounded in Christ, point to the love of Jesus as the ideal.  Chocolates are fine.  Saying “I love you” is great, recommended, advisable.  Romantic love can be a blessing straight from the hand of God.  Still, all of these things need to be built on the love of Jesus so that our worth comes from our relationship with God, not whether or not we have a relationship with another.  Our contentment comes from our relationship with Jesus, not from another source.  Our joy, our peace, our happiness, our hope, our love comes from Christ, flows from Christ, points to Christ as an expression of God’s love for us, and that we are so confident in this love of God for each of us, personally, that we can make it though any day, even Valentine’s Day, leaning on Jesus.

Do you know something else?  Do you know why people began to celebrate Saint Valentine in the first place?  Because he bought the best flowers?  Made the best chocolates?  Had the perfect marriage?  

No.  He laid down his life on account of his love for God and love for others.  He ministered to people who were persecuted, cared for the needs of those who were suffering because of their faith, and ultimately, he was martyred because of his own relationship with Jesus Christ.  Saint Valentine knew the love of God so deeply, so personally, so intimately, that he was willing to give up everything he had to serve Jesus.

How about that for a new Valentine’s Day ideal?  The sacrificial love of the Father, given to us through Jesus Christ and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, enabling us to love God in return and to love our neighbors…even if it costs us our very life.

Now, that’s a Valentine’s Day message I could get behind.  With this message, Valentine’s Day could become my thing.  That’s a Valentine’s Day love that is worthy of building one’s life around, the sacrificial love of God who enables us to sacrificially love others.  Oh that I would know this love deep within my heart and that it would continue to change my very being.

Friend, I do not know what Valentine’s Day has in store for you.  Excitement.  Chocolate.  Roses.  Sorrow.  Disappointment.  Heartache.  Pain.  Regardless, I do know that there is more to love than we typically hear about on Hallmark movies or see on advertisements or are told that we need.  I pray that regardless of your circumstances on this Valentine’s Day that you will know the deep and true love of Jesus, and that you will build your life on God’s love.

After all, Paul reminds us:

“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? …No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”   

                                                                                                                            ~ Romans 8:35-37

No matter what we might face, trouble, hardship, persecution, famine…Valentine’s Day, know that we are more than conquerors.  Through Jesus.  Who loves us.

                                                                                                                                 ~ Pastor Chris

People Get Ready (February 7, 2021)

The time is quickly approaching!  Easter is coming!  

Granted, we have some time before Easter Sunday arrives and we’re doing whatever we do on Easter (and whatever we do this year on Easter will likely still look different from whatever we’ve historically done on Easter in the past…I imagine that masks will still be involved and the large, extravagant buffets won’t be happening yet…but that’s just a guess).  Regardless, Easter is coming!  It will soon be time when we celebrate the Risen King!

The fact that Easter is coming also means that the lead-up to Easter is coming.  The season of Lent is almost upon us.  With Ash Wednesday happening on the 17th, the Lenten season will be starting within a couple of blinks of an eye.  Yep.  The “fish fries” will be here.  Fish sandwiches will be happening everywhere.  If you want fish on a Friday, you will be sure you can find it!  Even places known for their chicken (ahem…Chick-fil-A), are sure to offer fish during Lent.  After all, most restaurants want to make sure that they, too, are getting ready for Easter, and eating fish on Fridays is how you get ready for Easter!  (This certainly wouldn’t just be a business savvy move to maintain and even boost their Catholic clientele over the Lenten season.)  

Alright.  I’m being a little sarcastic and possibly a little unfair.  I’m not trying to knock the Catholic practice of fasting during Lent.  Nor, am I inherently opposed to Chick-fil-A offering fish (though I do think this is primarily a business decision rather than a religious decision).  Still, I have to ask…what about those of us who are Protestant?  What about those of us who don’t follow the Catholic guidelines for Lent?  What about those of us who don’t even like fish?  (I like it fine, but it’s not high on my list.)  Should we even bother with Lent?  Does the season even hold any meaning?  Do we even need to “do” anything?  Some might even ask…"Pastor Chris, are you going to tell me about chocolate again?”

There’s a song by The Impressions called “People Get Ready.”  It popped into my head today as I was writing the devotional.  If you’re feeling soulful and you know the song, feel free to belt it out, but if you don’t, here are the lyrics to the first verse.

People get ready, there's a train a comin' 

You don't need no baggage, you just get on board 

All you need is faith, to hear the diesels hummin'

Don't need no ticket, you just thank the Lord

Now, I know that the song isn’t talking about getting ready for Easter, per se.  Instead, if you continue on through the lyrics, it’s speaking more about getting ready for eternity, about boarding the “train to Jordan.”  It’s talking about getting into heaven…an important destination for which one should be ready.  Historically, though, the song’s meaning isn’t limited to imagery of the everlasting.  Written in a time of great civil unrest, “People Get Ready” is also tied to the Civil Rights movement, and it can be heard as a Black American “freedom song”, a song that looks towards freedom from oppression, towards a better day.  Both of these meanings and interpretations are valid and important.  It’s important for people to get ready for the train to Jordan.  After all, death will come for all of us, and it will be good for us to be aboard the train that leads to everlasting life.  It’s also important to recognize the suffering of others, to hope, to pray, to work towards freedom for all.  Both of these applications of this song are meaningful, are important. 

Both meanings are also applicable to us in the context of Lent.

For Catholics, the Lenten season should be marked by three things.  1) Seeking the Lord in prayer & Scripture.  2) Service by giving alms.  (In other words, making an extra effort to take care of the poor & needy.)  3) Fasting.  (That practice of giving something up, of sacrificing so that something greater might be gained.  Denying oneself in order to focus more fully on God.)

I know.  I know.  I can hear you saying it, “BUT I’M NOT CATHOLIC!”

Neither am I.  

Still, I wonder if it might be time for us to get ready.  Is it possible that we could learn from these three practices of Lent?  Might this be an opportunity for us to grow closer to God?  Is it possible that the Lenten season for 2021 would be a season where we see our life in Christ grow just a bit more?  

Let’s consider each point.  

First, Seek the Lord in prayer and Scripture.  I hope, I pray, I plead, I beg, I encourage for this to be an “all-the-time” kind of a deal for you.  Not just a Sunday thing.  Not just a “I need something” time.  Not just a Lenten practice, but an all-the-time thing.  Prayer and Scripture.  Prayer and Scripture.  Prayer and Scripture!!!  Still, Lent offers us an opportunity to examine our prayer and Scripture patterns and habits.  Remember what Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5:17, “pray continually” or “pray without ceasing.”  So, I ask, where in your life can you add a bit of prayer?  During Lent, where is an opportunity for you to pray a bit more?  Where can you be intentional about adding prayer and Scripture to your daily routine?  A new memory verse that you say as you walk up your flight of steps each day?  A sticky-note that you have on your bathroom mirror with a Bible verse?  A new practice of praying for the mail carrier when you get the junk mail out of the mailbox each day?  A couple minute prayer over the prayer list at the bottom of this mailing?  Prayer and Scripture.  People Get Ready.  Add it to your Lenten practices this year.

Second, Care for the poor.  Again, I hope that this is an “all-the-time” thing.  I hope that we care for those who are less fortunate than us.  Why?  Because we are earning something?  No.  We care for those who are less fortunate than us because we realize that we are unworthy of the love that we have received in Christ Jesus.  We recognize that we, too, with different circumstances, different environments, different countries of birth could have been in the exact same position.  We remember that we are called to care for the widow, the orphan, the poor, the needy.  Also, as an added incentive in case we needed one, remember what Jesus said in Matthew.  

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.”  (Matthew 25:35-36)  

In context, this verse is talking about those who are welcomed into the kingdom of heaven, those who cross the Jordan, those who welcomed into eternity by the Father (People Get Ready!).  Those who are welcomed into the Father’s house are those who have cared for the poor, and by caring for the poor, they have cared for Jesus, himself.  So, I ask, in this upcoming season of Lent, how might you stretch yourself a little bit more in caring for the poor, for the oppressed?  Can you pack up a box to donate to the local food bank?  Can you send an extra gift to a ministry that feeds the hungry?  Is there an extra coat that you can give away?  Is there some other thing that you might do?  Could you possibly connect the first point, to pray, with this second?  Care for the poor.  People Get Ready.  Add it to your Lenten practices this year.

Third, Fasting.  Fasting doesn’t always get a lot of attention.  We don’t often talk about fasting as a practice or as something that we can/should do as a believer in Christ.  Even though that is the case, I would argue that it should fall into the “all-the-time” category.  (Not that we are literally fasting from food or drink all of the time, but that we are putting fasting into regular practice.)  Do you remember what Jesus did after he was baptized in the Jordan River?  He fasted.  Do you remember what Jesus said when he was questioned about the disciples fasting practices?  He said that the time will come when they will fast, even though they weren’t fasting right at that moment. (Mark 2:20)  Also, do you remember what Jesus said regarding the practice of fasting?  He said this:  

When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.  But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.  (Matthew 6:16-18)

When you fast…

That would seem to imply that we do what?  Fast.  Now, I’m not going to go into an exhaustive conversation on fasting right now.  However, I will suggest that you don’t go all “extreme” and decide that a complete, 40-day, no food, no water, Jesus in the wilderness type fast is what you want to do.  Start smaller.  Much smaller than that.  What am I suggesting?  How about adding a little bit of fasting to the Lenten season this year?  What if you took the five minutes of ice-cream time after Tuesday’s lunch and spent that same five minutes in prayer and reading the Bible?  Or even if that was in prayer for someone who is less fortunate than you?  (See what I did there?  I combined all three into one.)  Or, what if you took it a step further?  What if you skipped lunch on Wednesdays during Lent (provided that you aren’t diabetic or have other preventing health issues)?  What if you spent that time in prayer and reading the Bible, etc.?  Is there something, even if it is something small, that you can fast from and spend that time getting closer to Jesus?  A TV show you might skip?  A sports blog that you may not read for a day?  Fasting.  People Get Ready.  Add it to your Lenten practices this year.

I’m not Catholic.  I’m not going to be eating fish sandwiches on Fridays during Lent.  Still, I do not want to miss an opportunity to be drawn closer to God during this season.  I don’t want to see Lent pass me by without giving it a thought.  Instead, I hope to use the season as a reason to be more focused in some areas of my faith.  I hope to use the season as a reason to be more concentrated in prayer & the Scriptures, to be mindful and caring for the poor, for the oppressed, and to fast.  How about you?

People Get Ready.  There’s a train a comin’. 

 ~ Pastor Chris