The Journey to the Destination

In case you missed it, the Christian Church entered the season of Lent on Wednesday. Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday, is the day when all fat, eggs, and dairy are used up before the abstinence of Lent took over. Notice, there is no need to drink up all the alcohol, but some traditions seem to make an attempt at that as well.

Another name for the season leading up to Lent is Carnival, from the Latin carne vale, or “farewell to the flesh. This can call the believer to the period of abstinence and fasting or have a focus on the spiritual rather than the material. It is probable that the is some joint meaning in the reference.

Following the strict religious traditions of the time, all celebrations end abruptly at midnight on Fat Tuesday, and the Christian community enters a time of fasting, prayer, emphasis on the spiritual disciplines, and a devotion to and remembrance of the sufferings of Jesus Christ on behalf of the believers. The time of Lent was also a season to instruct those people seeking to be baptized into the faith. With the sanction of Christianity by Emperor Constantine in A.D. 313, not only were sanctions and persecutions lifted from Christians, but there were even advantages and privileges for people becoming Christians. The large number of potential converts needed to be adequately instructed and their commitment to the faith confirmed. It is said that the season of Lent was one of the ways a person would indicate their resolve and dedication to becoming a follower of Jesus Christ.

Some 1,700 years later, we have mostly forgotten those traditions. Many of us have no idea of what Lent is or how we should faithfully observe it. Others consider Lent a Catholic observance and not something Protestants normally do. So, we arrive at Easter with little or no preparation for the day, a general lack of understanding of the sufferings of Christ needed to procure our salvation, and neglected the strengthening of our faith through the use of the spiritual disciplines.

While it may be too late to wear the ashes this year, it is never too late to strengthen our relationship to our Savior. This Lenten season I am reading Lent for Everyone, a devotional book for the season by N. T. Wright. There are dozens of other devotional books for the season, including picking up one of our own Daily Bread devotional books from the foyer for free. The main thing is that you begin, and that you be as faithful to your routine as you can possibly be. Don’t beat yourself up if you miss a day or two. Remember, it’s about growth in grace, not perfection.

Pastor Craig