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Since tomorrow is Ash Wednesday I got inspired to share how much I love Lent. Last year I wasn’t too good about honoring it, so a month or so after Easter I finally took it upon myself to give something up. Justin and I rid our house and works of sweets (and minimized our other unhealthy snacks) and tried to reach for fruit instead of candy, and vegetables instead of chips, and water or juice instead of soda. We both did pretty well for probably about 40 days, although I always try to go for longer. Interesting to note: Aramaic (which the Bible was originally written in) probably didn’t have a phrase for “many” and instead used a word which was translated into “40” – so all the times you hear the number 40, it probably just meant “lots of” rather than an exact amount. Kind-of like when I say “How come you didn’t call me for 8 years?” Let’s get back on track, though, with why I love Lent.
Lent is one of the greatest traditions of the modern Christian religion and yet I know only a few people who honor it each year. In case you don’t know about the Lenten season, here’s a little background. Lent starts on Ash Wednesday, the day after Fat Tuesday (Mardi Gras is its more well-known French name although it’s in a different language). Fat Tuesday is so called because it is the day before this somber period which is used as a day to indulge in the pleasures you are about to give up, specifically the fat of animals for the traditionally-practiced Lent.
So Ash Wednesday is a day to mark your penitence to Christ and begin the season anew. Some churches burn the palms from last year’s Palm Sunday (which I’ll get to) to make the ashes, but my home church in Tacoma gives you a piece of paper and has you write down your sins or anything else weighing heavy on your heart. Then you literally nail that paper to a wooden cross on the altar, giving your sins for Jesus to burden. The papers are collected, burned to ash, and you are marked with an ashen cross on your forehead to show that this season of Lent is to remember that Jesus Christ died carrying our sins and through His rising we are free to live.
From Ash Wednesday until Easter, Lent acknowledges the 40 days that Jesus was tempted in the wild by the Devil. Lent is a time to fast as the Christ did; to dismiss the temptations of the world and focus on honoring God. It is not a time to rejoice or revel, but to recognize that Jesus gave up so much more than we ever could. If you count up the days between the start and end of Lent you will see that there are more than 40. This is a really nice part about Lent – we get Sundays off. Just as God creating the world, we are allowed one day a week to rest. We can splurge a bit on a treat, eat a little feast, and praise our Savior. When the week of fasting begins again we once more remember how Jesus was able to stave off all temptations and continue to devote His entire existence to the Father. It is human to fall prey to tendencies of the flesh, but as holy people we are set apart from this Earth and Lent is a wonderful opportunity to prove that to ourselves.
Even if we are as children and give up something simple such as gum, we can remind ourselves of Jesus’s suffering through each craving or offering of gum. Every time we desire that gum we can know that we do not need it or any other material thing as long as we have faith in God. When we are obedient and willing God will provide us all we need for survival. I find that more than giving up something unhealthy or unnecessary, Lent provides me an opportunity to take upon something healthy that I may had deemed unnecessary. In the past, for example, I’ve given up root beer and taken on 200 crunches a day. Better was the season that I gave up gossip and took on 20 minutes of silent prayer each day and 1 hour of silent prayer once a week. I think that is what I will strive for again this Lent.
One week before Lent ends on Easter Sunday is Palm Sunday – the day commemorating when Jesus rode into Jerusalem and all His followers welcomed him by laying their cloaks and palm leaves on the ground before Him, sort-of like a red carpet welcoming. This is a wonderful day to celebrate when Jesus was still considered the Messiah before He was condemned to death just days later. In church we sing and shout Hosannah to the Lord and wave our own palm leaves joyfully. Hosannah is just an excited word of praise to a savior – the people of Jerusalem knew then that Jesus was the Christ and they were overjoyed to have Him in their town. It is really nice to get this glad day before Maundy Thursday marks His last supper and Good Friday (which must be one of those ironic names like when a fat guy is called Tiny) marks His quick trial by His previous admirers and death on the cross.
But don’t worry! Jesus was only really dead part of Friday and Saturday and part of Sunday, because on that third day He rose again. He came back to life, but not like a zombie or a ghost – He was made new. He suffered terribly on the cross to save us from both the everyday sins we dismiss and the terrible ones we regret instantly. He was mocked, prodded, tortured, and murdered, but just two days later He arose. The stone of His grave was pushed back and an angel sat where His broken body had laid, and proclaimed that He had risen from the dead. So Lent may be a great time to bring yourself back to God, but the end of Lent, Easter, is the greatest! Without that final day, we would all be destined for Hell, but through Jesus Christ we too have received eternal life and that is the best reason to celebrate ever.
I love Lent, and I urge you all to recognize the Lenten season this year. I want you to remember how much Jesus gave up, and become closer to God in the process. But most of all I want you to rejoice when it’s over because He has risen!
Lent is one of the greatest traditions of the modern Christian religion and yet I know only a few people who honor it each year. In case you don’t know about the Lenten season, here’s a little background. Lent starts on Ash Wednesday, the day after Fat Tuesday (Mardi Gras is its more well-known French name although it’s in a different language). Fat Tuesday is so called because it is the day before this somber period which is used as a day to indulge in the pleasures you are about to give up, specifically the fat of animals for the traditionally-practiced Lent.
So Ash Wednesday is a day to mark your penitence to Christ and begin the season anew. Some churches burn the palms from last year’s Palm Sunday (which I’ll get to) to make the ashes, but my home church in Tacoma gives you a piece of paper and has you write down your sins or anything else weighing heavy on your heart. Then you literally nail that paper to a wooden cross on the altar, giving your sins for Jesus to burden. The papers are collected, burned to ash, and you are marked with an ashen cross on your forehead to show that this season of Lent is to remember that Jesus Christ died carrying our sins and through His rising we are free to live.
From Ash Wednesday until Easter, Lent acknowledges the 40 days that Jesus was tempted in the wild by the Devil. Lent is a time to fast as the Christ did; to dismiss the temptations of the world and focus on honoring God. It is not a time to rejoice or revel, but to recognize that Jesus gave up so much more than we ever could. If you count up the days between the start and end of Lent you will see that there are more than 40. This is a really nice part about Lent – we get Sundays off. Just as God creating the world, we are allowed one day a week to rest. We can splurge a bit on a treat, eat a little feast, and praise our Savior. When the week of fasting begins again we once more remember how Jesus was able to stave off all temptations and continue to devote His entire existence to the Father. It is human to fall prey to tendencies of the flesh, but as holy people we are set apart from this Earth and Lent is a wonderful opportunity to prove that to ourselves.
Even if we are as children and give up something simple such as gum, we can remind ourselves of Jesus’s suffering through each craving or offering of gum. Every time we desire that gum we can know that we do not need it or any other material thing as long as we have faith in God. When we are obedient and willing God will provide us all we need for survival. I find that more than giving up something unhealthy or unnecessary, Lent provides me an opportunity to take upon something healthy that I may had deemed unnecessary. In the past, for example, I’ve given up root beer and taken on 200 crunches a day. Better was the season that I gave up gossip and took on 20 minutes of silent prayer each day and 1 hour of silent prayer once a week. I think that is what I will strive for again this Lent.
One week before Lent ends on Easter Sunday is Palm Sunday – the day commemorating when Jesus rode into Jerusalem and all His followers welcomed him by laying their cloaks and palm leaves on the ground before Him, sort-of like a red carpet welcoming. This is a wonderful day to celebrate when Jesus was still considered the Messiah before He was condemned to death just days later. In church we sing and shout Hosannah to the Lord and wave our own palm leaves joyfully. Hosannah is just an excited word of praise to a savior – the people of Jerusalem knew then that Jesus was the Christ and they were overjoyed to have Him in their town. It is really nice to get this glad day before Maundy Thursday marks His last supper and Good Friday (which must be one of those ironic names like when a fat guy is called Tiny) marks His quick trial by His previous admirers and death on the cross.
But don’t worry! Jesus was only really dead part of Friday and Saturday and part of Sunday, because on that third day He rose again. He came back to life, but not like a zombie or a ghost – He was made new. He suffered terribly on the cross to save us from both the everyday sins we dismiss and the terrible ones we regret instantly. He was mocked, prodded, tortured, and murdered, but just two days later He arose. The stone of His grave was pushed back and an angel sat where His broken body had laid, and proclaimed that He had risen from the dead. So Lent may be a great time to bring yourself back to God, but the end of Lent, Easter, is the greatest! Without that final day, we would all be destined for Hell, but through Jesus Christ we too have received eternal life and that is the best reason to celebrate ever.
I love Lent, and I urge you all to recognize the Lenten season this year. I want you to remember how much Jesus gave up, and become closer to God in the process. But most of all I want you to rejoice when it’s over because He has risen!
3 comments:
Hi Nicole-- I admire that you observe Lent and also know a lot about it! I wish I knew the meaning of burning the previous year's palms...do you? I like the idea that your church in Tacoma did. Did they collect the papers before Lent so the ashes would be ready by Ash Wednesday? Maybe I'll suggest the idea and we'll do it next year at my church. What church did you go to in Tacoma? I can't remember.
I don't know why we burned last year's palms - maybe just because we Tacomans love to reuse and recycle! We actually wrote down our papers during a silent prayer and reflection part of the service for about 5 minutes. I went to Trinity Presbyterian in Tacoma - it's where we got married and where Kirby was baptized, and when we move back that's where we'll attend regular services.
Yeah, after I left the comment I thought that you went to a Presbyterian church in Tacoma. Ok, so you wrote down on your papers during the Ash Wednesday service, but did they get burned the same night and then put on your forehead? I'm confused. I have heard of other churches burning the previous year's palms, so unfortunately it probably has nothing to do with recycling...
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