LENT BEGINS–WHAT DOES LENT MEAN TO YOU?
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February 14, 2018
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LENT BEGINS–WHAT DOES LENT MEAN TO YOU?
IFA Staff
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February 14, 2018
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Ash Wednesday, February 14, 2018, marks the beginning of Lent, the 40 days leading up to Easter. We want to know–what does Lent mean to you? Share your thoughts below.
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During Lent – I make a special effort to really rest in the Father’s presence to allow His Refiner’s and Purifying Spirit to seek out those places that need to be purged. We have because we do not ask. So I ask Him to do that very thing. I have added something different this year – I asking God to give me some Big Hairy Audacious Prayers that I can ask Him about – something for my precious church. May the Fire of the Holy Spirit blow through our nation’s churches.
Had no idea. Thank you.
Jesus was crucified as the Passover Lamb but the earliest Gentile Church Fathers (Origen, Marcion, etc) were led by the Liar to separate from our Father’s Sacred Calendar of appointed times to meet with Him. They created the season of Lent far from the Jewish fall 40 days of repentance (including Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kipper). They topped it off with worship of the pagan goddess Ishtar/Astarte (Easter) and the Sun god (Sunday). Celebrating bunnies, eggs and ham instead of lamb is the Replacement Theology of the “New Israel”. Dismissing the Apostles’ and Jesus’ Hebraic ways, they built up rules restricting our Jewish relations and heritage (Romans 9:4), villified our Jewish brethren in the faith and fueled antisemitism with foder Hitler ran with. We think they should be like us, ignoring Paul’s
visions in Ephesians 2 and Romans 11. May our Father return us to His righteous Word and show us how to repair this breach.
A time to come closer to God, get to know Him better and learn to love Him more. And learn to love my neighbor better.
Lent is 40 days of reflection before the glorious time of Easter, a time to review our life and make changes to better serve God.
I am not Catholic or Lutheran, but about 10 years ago my pastor challenged us to discover the real meaning and purpose of Lent. Now I look forward to it, as a special opportunity to honor Jesus and my Father. I give up something, and I add something. This year I gave up complaining, which is actually considered a sin. It so displeases God, and I sadly can rarely go an entire day without complaining. I challenge everyone reading this to try it! I also will physically pray for and with one person’s spoken need every day, wherever I am: at the grocery store, the mall, in the neighborhood. Lord change me and use me! To God be the glory!
I think this is a wonderful idea and a good way to be mindful of who we are in Christ. I’m going to try!
All these comments are very interesting, since I am a Messianic Jew, a Jewish believer who believes in Yeshua; we Jews have a time of repentence between the Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashanah) and Yom Kippur – The Day of repentence and atonement for our many sins. I just listened to Michael Youssef, originally from Egypt, I believe talk about Jesus chastising the church at Ephesus, who although materially rich, were in deep spiritual poverty. Does the Christian church today, although they send forth missionaries to Haiti and Africa, do they step over the bodies of the homeless on the city streets? I am willing to bet that most “Christians” do; they expect God to honor their “service to the poor” in Honduras, when they won’t help a fellow American who has fallen on bad times and is homeless. What did Christ say? “I abhor your rituals, your complacency as you worship in the pews.
I am an American Christian. When I first read your post, the part about Christians stepping over homeless bodies, I got angry. Then I read it a few more times without anger but with sorrow. While your intent may have been to judge and criticize the Christian faith, I know there are thousands of American Christian missionaries who serve here in America and abroad to help and love the needy. Yes, we should be doing more for the homeless in America. How about the Jews? Do they send missionaries abroad, or help the homeless in America?
If you study history, the early church gave alms to CHRISTIANS who were displace and lost their inheritance, because they became followers of Jesus. Even the widows of the church had to prove they actually washed the saints feet, and were worthy of provision. I only see personal giving in the early church to other worthy Christians. The Church needs to be Holy again and walk in “THE WAY,” and be led by the Spirit to only give when led by the Spirit, and not randomly empowering takers & the rebellious, that need to go to their own family and friends for handouts, and even their own church. wake up sleeping church.
If I really want to experience Jesus more, there are some things standing in the way. Jesus said to follow Him, we must deny self, take up our cross and follow Him. He was clear about that. Biblically, fasting usually referred to fasting from food. I have found this discipline is a real way to hear more clearly from the Lord. (For me, His voice seems to be most clear after the fast rather than during it).
Yes= we Lutherans usually have an extra mid-week worship service, and my husband and I have an (“extra”) Lenten Devotional for these weeks from Lutheran Indian Ministries (which we support); for me it is the time when I think especially of all the living, terrible suffering, unimaginable dying on that cross (and RISING) JESUS went through for you and me and everyone in this our world; WHAT L O V E THE FATHER AND SON HAVE FOR US ALL! NO matter if we accept it or not!!! Phyllis
I am excited that people are thinking about Jesus, but A religious act can have deception, I was a Catholic before I became a Christian and many Catholics were not saved, they didn’t know Jesus, but the performed religious rituals thinking they would become somehow become righteous, by outward works, not of the heart. I saw these people one of my one grandmothers after these rituals, and they were still angry and not at all transformed, but my father who was a Christian as a boy continued to Love people, never get angry, raise his voice, swear, or gossip, and he never observed anything but Jesus. The only thing acceptable to God Almighty is Overcome, stay in the Spirit, Take Dominion over the earth, & Love without sin 365 days a year.
These suggestions are wonderful. I heard something this morning about Lent that really touched my spirit–Lent is an invitation. So I am going to ask the Lord to show me personally what He is inviting me into as I prepare my heart for Easter. I am going to ask Him to show me what spiritual disciplines He is calling me to for this season.
Be blessed brothers and sisters! Alleluia, He is risen!
A time to turn off distractions and draw close to God. A time to trust. I’m off social media. It’s getting too weird for me. But praying.
All about the cross, His love, His giving and IT IS FINISHED.
FORGIVING. JOHN 3:16
It is finished, means we no longer need to sin. It is actually a legal term of the day, and means the dept is paid, we are no longer subject to sin. Now we can overcome, enter the kingdom on earth identical to heaven, & take dominion over the earth, because Jesus is returning for a church without spot or wrinkle, a church far beyond what we see today.
For the past 3-4 years I have turned off the television. After a few days the strong temptation to turn it on stop. About a week or so later I find my head is clearer, my heart lighter. I have usually planned ahead of time a special Bible study or devotion, or both. God uses this time to show me so many insights and changes me, trimming off unnecessary habits, idleness, self-consciousness and I see more of Him.
Lutherans and many other faiths also spend time during Lent to reflect on their lives for needed change and to remove or fast from some form of worldly practice or food entity in their lives that they could do without. Lent is a time to spend time asking God what it is He would like us to bring in to our lives that would bring glory to Him. Things that would help us to become closer to Him. Things that need to be removed from our lives that hinder us from knowing Him in a more intimate way. And most of all to prepare ourselves with greater understanding of Passover and all that Jesus did for us on the cross.
40 days of Lent, up to Palm Sunday; 40 days of fasting our Lord went through in the desert being tempted by the devil before he began His earthly Ministry; 40 days from His Resurrection to His Ascension; all in preparation. During Lent we prepare for His Word fulfilled, because Christmas is the promise of our salvation, Easter is the Word fulfilled.
Isaiah 58:6 Is not this the Fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the thongs of the yoke,… :7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,… :9 If you take away from the midst of you, the yoke, the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness…
I will give up watching TV and use time to pray and read Bible. I am not Catholic but was raised that way.
Even though I am not Catholic, I am mindful of Lent. As the season preceding Easter, it becomes a season of reflection and perhaps even fasting–from something. As our Catholic brothers and sisters have done, fasting from something–or giving up something for Lent–is an exercise in self-denial and a powerful spiritual discipline. I will consider how I can participate and pray.
Thank you Kris for those inspiring thoughts to seek our Savior during Lent! We can never be reminded enough to taking our minds off of ourselves and fix them on Yeshua, the Author and Finisher of our Faith.