Prone to Forget
The Season of Lent begins this Wednesday, March 2. Forty days, plus six Sundays, set apart to remind us of our need for a savior and to refocus our attention on the God of the universe.
Lent was not prescribed in scripture but rather was established by the church long ago as an additional practice for remembering the faithfulness of God. And as we've seen throughout scripture the practice of remembering takes work, as it seems we are prone to forget.
Many choose to fast during Lent, whether from particular foods or from items like social media, television, or anything that might be a distraction, while also being intentional to dig into scripture, prayer, and time set apart with God. While fasting is a wonderful way to increase our dependence on God the intention of Lent is more than giving something up, it is an invitation for our hearts to be more deeply transformed.
In Jeremiah 2 God is speaking through Jeremiah to the people in Jerusalem. In verse 13 he says "My people have committed two sins: they have forsaken me, the spring of living water, and have dug their own cisterns, broken cisterns that cannot hold water."
Not only did God's people walk away from him - THE LIVING WATER - they decided they could do a better job supplying their own needs by digging their own cisterns. Cisterns that couldn't even hold water and would never compare to the fullness of what God had offered. They were chasing after idols all the while ignoring their creator.
How often do we forget that God is our LIVING WATER? With him there is no lack, yet so often we try to live life disconnected from the source.
We have all felt the heaviness of the world more acutely these past 24 months. There has been much loss, much grief, and much brokenness. And yet, there has also been much hope. May our hope continue to be found in God. May we remember that God is our source and that we can trust him at all times.
I think one of the beautiful things about Lent is that the six Sundays leading to Easter are considered days of celebration. Days to glimpse the joy of Easter. Days to rejoice that we have a savior. Days of feasting together.
As we gather together in our communities in the weeks to come may we hold the tension of lament with that of celebration. May we be united as we come to the throne of grace seeking God's mercy for all that is happening in the world. May our hearts and minds be attuned to the Holy Spirit as we go about our week praying for those in danger, embracing those that grieve, and walking with those facing so many unknowns. And may we also find ourselves celebrating the faithfulness of God and looking toward the picture of resurrection life. Both celebration and lament are true and deserve our attention. Thanks be to God who meets us in both.
~ Melissa