Posts with the category “lent-2024”

In keeping with the theme of adding things to our lives for Lent, I want to encourage you to consider adding or growing your commitment to prayer. But as I talk about prayer, I don’t simply mean stopping to ask God for something or saying a quick blessing before you eat. What I mean is praying as a focused and intentional time of worship that goes further than just making our requests known to God...  Read More

There are plenty of reasons people fast from certain things. There are medical, dietary, and religious fasts (Ramadan is an annual Muslim fast seeking to earn favor). Why would or should Christians fast?Before I share why we should fast, let me address one misplaced motive. We should not fast to get something from God. Several Christians seem to add fasting to their regular disciplines to convince...  Read More

That is the title of the first chapter in John Piper's book, A Hunger for God. (Click here for a free ebook). It's also a question lots of Christians ask. Since Lent is most often associated with fasting, and most of us probably don't practice the spiritual discipline of fasting often, I thought it would be good for us to consider this question in this season. In short, the answer to the question ...  Read More

Ash Wednesday is the first day of Lent. Maybe you have friends who are Roman Catholic or from other protestant but more liturgical denominations than ours who went today and were marked with an ashen cross on their forehead. We aren't going to practice Lent in the same way, but that doesn't mean this can't be a season of intentional and heightened seeking of the Lord and His will for us as His peo...  Read More

This Wednesday, February 14th, is not just Valentine’s Day. It’s also the first day of Lent. Much like the season of Advent, Lent is a season of preparation. While Advent is focused on Jesus coming to us, Lent prepares us to reflect on and celebrate Jesus’ death and resurrection. Starting on Ash Wednesday, it lasts until Easter. It is 40 days long, not counting Sundays, since these are considered ...  Read More