In my life I have done some things that would be considered, well, edgy. For example, years ago I observed Ramadan, not for the same reasons Muslims do, but in solidarity with my Muslim friends who were suffering in the aftermath of 9-11. I also used that time to pray for the world of Islam and my desire to see Christ proclaimed and accepted there.
We evangelicals tend to shy away from anything that even remotely sounds like penitential acts. We are afraid that we might be tempted to think that these things in and of themselves will help us achieve godliness. But that is nonsense. All we have to do is look inside ourselves and we will quickly realize how impossible that is. My sins are too real to allow me to fool myself, even for a second.
For example, Jesus did not speak against fasting. He only warned us not to do it for the wrong reasons (Matthew 6:16-18).
So this year I am observing Lent. Why? Here are my reasons:
1. It will allow me to focus more intentionally on the work that my Lord did for me at the cross.
2. It will allow me to force myself to give up some things I really treasure. By doing so, I will be able to walk in the shoes of the majority of the rest of the world for whom deprivation is a way of life. I will also be able to help some causes I am usually not in position to help.
3. It will make the Resurrection Sunday experience even more exciting to me this year.
And what is “lent” anyway, you may ask… Well, the word in the majority of other languages literally refers to 40 days, a traditional reference to the temptation of Jesus by the Devil. “Quaresma,” in Portuguese, “Cuaresma” in Spanish. In English it is derived from the German and it means “long,” a reference to the days of spring which naturally seem longer, although they seem pretty far away to me right now…
Different Christian traditions follow different calendars but the most common one starts the day of Ash Wednesday (March 5 this year) and ends on the Thursday before Easter (April 17 this year).
In general, I will follow the three practices of lent, which are prayer (justice towards God), fasting (justice towards self), and helping the poor (justice towards neighbor).
In addition to giving up things that are precious to me, I will be following the daily lent devotional provided by CRU (formerly Campus Crusade) and will be blogging here about subjects I normally don’t write about.
If you would like to follow along with me, please let me know by leaving a comment. I will also be interested in your stories about lent 2014.
Pastor Ivanildo C. Trindade
pastor ivanildo 
I have been a Christian from a very young age. For the first time, I will be actively observing Lent by giving something up (I’m actually doing two things). So excited to get closer to God and bring glory to Him!
Thanks for posting, Hannah. I am glad that you will be on this journey. Please feel free to comment and share your thoughts. Blessings.
I have personally observed Lent for the last several years. Each year has gotten a bit more intense. The first couple years I gave up a couple things I really like to eat. The next year coupled with the food stuffs I gave up social media. I focused on reading through the Gospels, portions of the Old Testament and became more intentional in my prayer life.
Last year, I did all of the above and unplugged completely. No TV, no podcasts, no internet browsing. I only listened to the daily news updates on the radio in the morning and evening. I re read the Gospels again.I began to look for ways to help those who had much less than I did. I fasted on Good Friday. Low blood sugar headaches are killers… and trying to stay focused in prayer is a challenge. But, in comparison to what Jesus suffered to ransom my soul, I can not complain.
I am looking forward to beginning another Lenten season tomorrow. It’s not about me at all…
Patti
Thank you, Patti. I appreciate your comments. You will have a lot to share with us, I am sure. Looking forward to it.
I would like to follow along with you.
I will be praying for you. It will be a challenge but a blessing!
Yes. We’d like to follow along….I’m planning on giving up Facebook at this point, and hope to read through The Way of the Heart by Nouwen. The children and I will be putting our Jesus Tree up today, and we will take them through the Trail to the Tree Devotional by Ann Voskamp. This is my first Lent observance, so there are some quakings inside as to the challenge, yet a great longing to draw closer to the Lord. “May we be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.” (Col.1:11)
thanks for posting, robyn. we will be journeying together. yes, indeed, the inheritance is sweet! keep the comments coming!
My goal is to be faithful in lent this year. I want resurrection Sunday to be more than Easter Sunday,
amen to that!
A couple of years ago Isaiah 58:1-9 rocked my world in regards to the kind of fast that God approves of. If we merely give up our treasures and pleasures and not look to the sin and lack of love/compassion in our own hearts, God is not pleased with our fasting.
We may not walk around in sackcloth and ashes anymore when we fast but what are some ways we approximate that attitude today? We need to guard our hearts during Lent. Pride can sneak in and rob us of the deep things God desires to work in our hearts.
There are aspects of my worship and devotion to God that I prefer to not let the right hand know what the left hand is doing. I hesitated when I first posted about this practice in my own life. But, I sensed that being open and sharing my journey could encourage others as we set aside this time to dig more deeply in to God’s word, prayer, and finally obeying the way Spirit guides us to love our neighbor as ourselves.
the whole book of isaiah has that tendency to “doom” us. fortunately, we serve a gracious God who can help us put the pieces together. but i can’t wait for heaven to see what i am missing. my picture is still incomplete.