Lent 1 - The time has come

-


Mark 1:12-15

Lent is a season in the Christian Church where we relate to Jesus' time spent in the wilderness. After Jesus was baptised, he went out into the wilderness for 40 days. Here, he resisted temptations from Satan and prepared himself for his coming ministry to the world.

Lent is a 40-day season that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Palm Sunday.

In many church traditions, Christians will use the period of Lent as an opportunity to "give up" certain delicacies (such as eating particular foods or watching TV) as an act of fasting. 

Fasting helps us draw nearer to God. As we crave that which we have given up, we are reminded of Christ's temptations in the wilderness and we are invited into a moment of prayer and sacrifice to God.

Sometimes during Lent, instead of giving something up for 40 days, I like to commit to taking up a "good deed" during this time. This could be reading a few chapters of my Bible every day, handing sandwiches out to those in need on the way to work, or journaling. The act of committing to something new and good helps me draw near to God in the same way as giving up a delicacy would do.

What could you give up or take up during this season of Lent that will help you draw nearer to God in the coming weeks?

Just as Jesus used his time in the wilderness to prepare himself for his future ministry to the world, Lent is a time for self-examination and correction. As we fast and draw nearer to God during the season of Lent, we are called to repent of all our wrongdoings and encouraged to recommit our lives to Jesus and his cause.

Perhaps this season of Lent, we can use this time to refocus our lives on God's mission for the world so that we too can claim with Jesus: "The time has come. The Kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!"

Prayer: Lord Jesus, as we face temptation in our lives, may we be reminded that we are not alone. You too experienced temptation. Help us overcome our temptations as You did. During this season of Lent, may we draw near to You at every possible moment as we prepare ourselves to declare: "The time has come; The Kingdom of God is near." Amen

Image Source: Nathan Dumlao

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Posts

Leap of Faith

-
Image
I recently did the Lake Eland Extreme Zip-line with some of my friends from Pietermaritzburg. The zip-line is 1 100 meters long and reaches max speeds of up to 160km's per hour. All that is keeping you from falling hundreds of meters to an inevitable death is 2 cables and a harness that my hysterical brain was telling me would not have been out of place as a car's seat-belt. We arrived early and waited for half an hour as we contemplated our life choices up to this point. Eventually we were all kitted up and ready to go. While I wouldn't say that I have Acrophobia - an extreme fear of heights - as I looked out over the gorge that we would be flying through, breaking the national speed-limit in the process, it is fair to say that my stomach started churning and my legs turned to jelly. It was at this point that I'm sure many of us were trying to think of any reasonable excuse that would get us out of this jump without seeming like a coward. One of the thin
Read more

The God of Running, Talents and Passions

-
Image
Over the past couple of months I have developed a passion for running.  I am not terribly good at it and I doubt I will take it very far, but something about training hard over the past couple of months has spiked an enthusiasm in me that I cannot really explain. It is during my time running on the road when I am able to clear my mind from stress and think about all the things God has been doing in my life. Image Source:  Lucas Favre Yesterday I completed my first full marathon.  It was one of the most difficult things I have ever done, but it felt good to complete something that I had worked so long and hard to accomplish. Some of you might be wondering why someone would run for hours, putting themselves through extreme pain just to receive a T-shirt and a medal. I don't blame you. I used to wonder the same. Not everyone is passionate about the same thing. Not everyone has the same talents or skills. But I believe that God blesses everyone with talents,
Read more

Harmony of Grace

-
Image
Image Source:  张 学欢 Why did I decide to start this blog? Why call it Harmony of Grace?  One definition for the word harmony is "living in peace and mutual understanding with others." I have always been fascinated with music and in my opinion, the musical definition of the word harmony has a more accurate depiction of the word's true meaning. In musical terms, a harmony is "a note or group of notes that compliment the notes in the melody (main tune of the song)." There are many different possible harmonies, but if played/sung correctly, they all compliment the melody and emphasize the beauty of the musical arrangement as a whole. When I had my first encounter with Jesus, the concept of harmony became much more real in my life. But how does harmony have anything to do with God's grace? I believe that God's grace can be seen in the world we live in, through various means, as a complimentary harmony to God's nature an
Read more