So it’s Lent!

Today is the first Sunday in Lent.

What does that make you think of? What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of “Lent”? Is it glum people giving up chocolate or beer or TV? Is it the character Klinger on the show MASH giving up atheism for Lent? Is it complete bafflement that anyone would give up stuff just because?

I’m not here to tell you what you thought of or even what you should think of. What I think of when I think of Lent is opportunity. Lent is an opportunity for me to think about what I believe, who I am and who I am becoming. Lent is an opportunity for me to very slightly imagine what it must have been like for Jesus to voluntarily give up stuff for others; now Jesus gave up omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence, etc. which is beyond us but every time we give things up for Lent we are emulating that same mind, at least a little bit.

All of that is true enough but what I wanted us to think about today was how Lent is also an opportunity for us to reflect on what we have already given up by following Jesus in the first place. And, in the same way that Lent is far more than a dour exercise in self-discipline, so is our Christian life.

Knox Presbyterian What will we give up?

St. Mark’s Presbyterian What will we give up?

Give one or both of these sermons a listen and let me know what you think of my take on what we’ve given up.

Blessings,