By The Rev. Marek Zabriskie
Lent is the 40-day season of the Christian Year where Christians take on spiritual practices that strengthen their relationship with God.
This church season is based on the 40 days that Jesus spent fasting, praying and being tempted in the wilderness. Few people really begin a spiritual journey until they have suffered. Note that none of Jesus’ ministry occurred until after he had struggled in the wilderness. The struggles that we undergo in bleak times of difficulty prepare us to serve God in the future.
In the Episcopal Church, the celebrant leading the Ash Wednesday service, which marks the beginning of Lent, reads these words from The Book of Common Prayer:
“Dear People of God:
The first Christians observed with great devotion the days of our Lord’s passion and resurrection, and it became the custom of the Church to prepare for them by a season of penitence and fasting…. I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church to the observance of a holy Lent, by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God’s holy Word.”
Later in the service, the priest imposes ashes upon the foreheads of worshippers who come forward as he or she says, “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Lent is a season where we are reminded of our mortality, as if the pandemic, incredible isolation, nearly a million American COVID-19 deaths and now war in Ukraine were not enough.
This has been such a hard last two years. The isolation has brought out the worst in many people. I recently flew back from a church conference in Atlanta and was grateful that there were no belligerent passengers onboard the plane.
Parents have challenged schools for months complaining about children having to wear masks, etc. Some have been way overboard in their communications and actions. On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave a rambling speech before commanding his military to invade Ukraine. Experts have suggested that his severe isolation has affected Putin’s disposition, but we know that he has been involved in evil throughout his adult life.
Remember that you are dust. Most of us run from the dust. The inability to accept our own limitations and humanity leads us to all kinds of destructive behavior – addictions, adultery, gambling, overeating, overspending, etc. The highest levels of divorce occur among those around the age of 65, an age when we struggle with our mortality. We run from the dust of our humanity and take refuge in things that numb our sense of vulnerability and mortality.
Lent begins with an invitation to pause, reflect, and grow spiritually. Would that the whole world would pause and take this season seriously. What if the Russian Orthodox Church would speak out and serve as the conscience of Russia rather than Putin’s silent partner?
How often we attack that in others which we cannot accept in ourselves. We project our own fears. The person who dabbles in insider trading is the harshest judge of someone else doing the same until he himself is caught. We can live our lives on two levels – one public and one lived in the shadows. C.J. Jung spoke of our need to confront and own our shadow.
Lent is God’s invitation for us to combat living divided lives – one led in private that is vastly different than the one that others see. Lent is a season for spiritual housecleaning of our souls.
The way to do this is by observing a daily spiritual practice. For centuries, Christians have grown closer to God by taking something on and giving something up during Lent. Here are some suggestions:
• Prayerfully and slowly read through one of the gospels. Mull over the words. Apply them to your life. Let God speak to your soul.
• Commit ten minutes a day to prayer. Write names on an index card of those who you know need God’s help. Pray for local and world concerns. Pray for Ukrainians. Pray that free nations will stand firm. Pray for peace and justice. Then listen quietly to hear God whisper in your soul.
• Give up worshipping from home for Lent and make your way back to church each Sunday.
• Read a spiritual classics like C.S. Lewis’ Screwtape Letters, St. Augustine’s Confessions, or Teresa of Avila’s spiritual autobiography. The Dogwood Bookstore at Christ Church has lots of devotionals available for purchase.
• Do a selfless deed each day to improve someone else’s life. Let Lent be about action.
• Write a handwritten letter or note each day to someone you haven’t been in close touch with and by Easter you will have resurrected 40 relationships.
• Tithe what you earn for the 40 days of Lent. Live one month with biblical conviction that alters your life and affects your spending and expenditures.
Choose one of these in order to care for your soul. In addition, most Christians give something up in Lent to commemorate Jesus’ 40-day fast. Consider:
• Forgoing a meal each day in Lent to hallow yourself out so that God can fill you up. Don’t think of it as a diet. Know that fasting builds willpower, helps us combat sin and temptation in our lives and facilitates our prayer and discernment.
• Give up alcohol. If you can’t give it up for 40 days, perhaps you should give it up forever.
• Limit using electronics and email to a few hours each day. The average American now checks his or her phone 348 times a day. How can God get a word in edgewise when we live so much of our lives in cyberspace.
• Fast from negativity. Try to go 40 days without saying anything negative. It will transform your outlook and relationships.
• Simplify your life. Discard one item or possession from your home or apartment each day. Put them in a pile. Have someone pick them up or deliver them to a place that can resell them. Declutter as a spiritual practice to simplify your dwelling place while allowing others to benefit from what you do not truly need.
Lenten practices are meant to cleanse our souls and prepare us to embrace the miracle of Easter. Lent is all about spiritual transformation and readying us for Easter joy.
