Lenten Resources

Are you ready?

"He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him." Mark 1:13

"Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished." Matthew 4:1-2

"Where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished." Luke 4:2

Clearly the synoptic gospel accounts give us Jesus' precedent for beginning ministry: forty days of fasting, overcoming temptation by Satan, and at the end being famished. Yet, what if we start off the journey being famished? What if we are already starving spiritually? How do we feed ourselves in the spiritual desert that can so often be the world in which we live?

When I ask people how they are doing a lot of the time they respond, "Crazy busy!" I am not alone in observing this trait. I learned about it in seminary, my rector Evan Garner has spoken about it, and Rob Bell talks about it in this podcast. We tend to fill every ounce of our proverbial cup each day such that if something unexpected happens everything overflows spilling all over the place! Sometimes we see our chalice running over as an abundance of blessings; however, if we spend much of our free time engaged in unintentional activities (I am thinking of mindless Facebook, Twitter, Instagram sessions and binge watching an entire series of ______ in particular), then we have to make room by pushing to the side our priorities that ground us, feed us, and give us life.

We cannot feed ourselves. We must allow time for God to spiritually give us life. If we remain in a constant state of busy-ness, then the glass that is our life just seems to make a huge mess distracting us from the steady stream of God's sustenance. The example Jesus offered in the desert provides for us an alternative way to life and ministry (by the way, whether you know it or not you have a ministry... it's not just for us collared people).

Jesus began his ministry by getting rid of everything else that was not God. He found God in the wilderness. He grounded his life's work in the dirt, sand, and earth that was the desert. He removed everything even food, so that God alone sustained him. Faith in God apparently provides more than enough nutritional value to persist. So what? So we move out to live beneath a palm tree? Do we give up food for forty days? No, not exactly.

This season of Lent provides us an opportunity to recognize our faulty reliance on things that are not God and to add disciplines to our lives that bring us closer to God. These forty days officially begin this Wednesday, a day known as Ash Wednesday when we remember that we are only dust and to dust we shall return. St. John's Decatur has services with the imposition of ashes at 7:00 AM, 12:10 PM, and 6:00 PM. On this day we come come face-to-face with our mortality and begin on this journey with Christ. From then until Easter we find ways to declutter our lives such that what remains brings us into the intimate life of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. You might be wondering at this point, what should I do? I thought you would never ask. Here are some helpful resources:

-Lent Madness: A fun, informative, and enlightening group spiritual practice that is based on March Madness, the NCAA Championship Basketball Tournament.

-Society of St. John the Evangelist (SSJE): The brothers at SSJE provide videos and workbooks to remember that Lent is "Time to… Stop, Pray, Work, Play & Love!"

-Read something that reminds you of God's presence, grace, and love in your life. There are lots of resources from Church Publishing. Or, you can try something yourself, like reading the Chronicles of Narnia to reconnect with your childlike love of and wonder about the Divine.

-St. John's Decatur: Every day of Lent St. John's Decatur will offer a Lenten meditation that brings some insight on our journey with God. Click here to view our page (and if you enjoy it please like our page).

-Church offerings: Most Episcopal churches offer some program during Lent. St. John's has a Wednesday night program that begins at 5:30 with a meal. There are some churches with noteworthy offerings, in particular Nativity, Huntsville and The Cathedral of the Advent, Birmingham.

-40 Bags in 40 Days: This might seem ambitious, but if these 40 days are to remove distractions that keep us from God, then this practice of giving away material things might be a very fitting practice for some.

Some suggestions from my friend James Franklin from St. James, Wilmington, NC:

-Pray each day for some of your Facebook friends (# of friends/40).

-Ride a bike or walk to work.

-Go screenless outside of work.

-Pray Daily Office.

-Read a book a week cover to cover.

-Compost.

-Clean out inbox and keep it clean.

-Fast like a monk (sun up to sun down... drink a heavy beer at noon... wait, what?)

If you have other suggestions, feel free to add them in the comments section!