When Less Leads to More: The True Intent of the Season of Lent
/This week is the start of Lent, and perhaps you, like me, didn’t grow up observing the tradition. However, in recent years, I’ve incorporated it into my daily practices, and I’d love to share a little bit with you about how deeply it has blessed me.
Although rich in tradition, it can feel rather empty and rote and when the focus is solely on the rules and rituals that must be followed.
Which is why for me, personally, God has helped me experience Lent as a season of following Him more closely, intentionally, and intensely than I merely legalistically follow the Lenten rules and rituals of the early church.
Lent is a 40-day period leading up to Easter and is meant to mirror Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness. It starts with Ash Wednesday, which happens to be February 18th this year.
Ash Wednesday‘s name and significance comes from the ashes placed on one’s forehead (typically by a church leader) to symbolize dust and death. It’s a somber day that encourages us to sit with our mortality. Because of our sin, we all are headed toward death. Oftentimes, during an Ash Wednesday service, the focus is on the words of God himself spoken to Adam:
“You will eat bread by the sweat of your brow until you return to the ground, since you were taken from it. For you are dust, and you will return to dust” (Genesis 3:19, ESV).
Hearing these words, we are reminded of the consequences of our sin and our need for a Savior.
The counting of the 40 days of Lent can be somewhat confusing. Sundays between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday are not included because they are also not included in the “fast” days.
You see, part of the observance of Lent, because it is mirroring Jesus’ time in the wilderness, is to fast and pray leading up to Resurrection Sunday.
And while fasting and prayer are integral parts of this tradition, instead of focusing on Lent being a season of giving up, I’d love to invite you (as I am longing to do, too) to shift our perspective to the original intent…
Lent isn’t a season where less is the purpose, but rather the pathway to the purpose, because the pursuit requires intentionality and intensity.
Less words. More of His Word.
Less noise. More of His voice.
Less panic. More of His peace.
Lent is a season where less leads us to more.
Where greater intentionality to pursue God leads us to less of a desire to go after lesser things of this world that just keep us wanting more.
Where greater intensity for worship and prayer and a holy pursuit of truth leaves us with no time or energy or appetite for those things that will never truly satisfy.
Where greater introspection leads us to intercession instead of letting idle time turn into idol worship in no time because we’ve turned our attention from what is best to what leads us to less…not more.
If you, like me, long for more of Him — a more that you’ve never known before, might I encourage you to simply seek Him throughout this season of Lent.
There are so many great resources available to help guide you in this season, but I’d love to invite you to join me in reading through the Gospel of John by way of my Lenten devotional, STAY.
John is 21 chapters, so we’ll be reading about a half chapter a day. STAY lays out the reading plan with additional devotional thoughts and prayers everyday for 40 days, from Ash Wednesday to Palm Sunday. I personally include Sundays in my 40-day count for the sake of consistency.
Because we aren’t taking Sunday’s off, we’ll finish a week early (intentionally) so we can simply sit with what we’ve read (or use those days throughout Holy Week to catch up if necessary).
STAY ends with three additional devotionals for Good Friday, Silent Saturday, and Resurrection Sunday to conclude the journey, and to help the reader celebrate all they’ve just observe and experienced on a personal level.
If you’d like to learn more about Lent, check out these excellent articles from Got Questions and Crosswalk:
What is Lent? It’s Meaning & Importance
And if you’d like to learn more about STAY, simply follow this link to my website to watch a trailer, purchase the book, and join the online community for accountability and rich discussion throughout the season of Lent.