FROM THE PASTOR
LENT - ATTACHMENT AND DETACHMENT
We are forever attaching and detaching something – to mobile phones, on emails, on power tools, and the list goes on. Not a day goes by without connecting or disconnecting, attaching something to one thing or another. Lent is no different.
Today (at the time of writing this article) is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the season of Lent. And with it comes the tradition of giving something up until Easter. The idea goes back to the practice of fasting, i.e., abstaining from food for a time. Practices like this can be beneficial (if and when you feel free to do so), and more beneficial if it serves in strengthening your walk with God. But how can giving up food, or some other innocent pleasure or practice do that? In other words, how can we detach ourselves from things of this world in order to attach ourselves to things of God?
Jesus was on about this in the Bible – Fasting and Prayer, remember? So fasting is a detachment from the earthly, and prayer is an attachment to God; an attachment of dependence on him. Real prayer is not getting God to do what we want, like bending God by holding the ear saying, “Listen here!”. Prayer is seeking to follow and find God’s will. And what does God want from you above all else? That you come to the cross of Jesus and find there forgiveness of sin and salvation; and that’s where the emphasisof Lent takes us. We close with the words from the Song: “O Lord throughout these Forty Days” (Based on Claudia F. Hernaman 1838-1898 And Gilbert e. Doan 1930-):
O Lord, throughout these forty days
You prayed and kept the fast;
Inspire repentance for our sin,
And free us from our past.
You strove with Satan, and you won;
Your faithfulness endured;
Give us your strength, your skill, and trust
In God’s eternal Word.
Though parched and hungry, yet you prayed
And fixed your mind above;
So teach us to forget our self
Since we have known God’s love.
Be with us through this season, Lord,
And all our earthly days,
That when the final Easter dawns,
We join in heaven’s praise.
We Pray For:
† Those who have plenty and those who have little, that during this time of fasting God may bring justice to the world.
† Those burdened by guilt, that they may know the joy of reconciliation.
† The church throughout the world, that it may be renewed through repentance.
Today (at the time of writing this article) is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the season of Lent. And with it comes the tradition of giving something up until Easter. The idea goes back to the practice of fasting, i.e., abstaining from food for a time. Practices like this can be beneficial (if and when you feel free to do so), and more beneficial if it serves in strengthening your walk with God. But how can giving up food, or some other innocent pleasure or practice do that? In other words, how can we detach ourselves from things of this world in order to attach ourselves to things of God?
Jesus was on about this in the Bible – Fasting and Prayer, remember? So fasting is a detachment from the earthly, and prayer is an attachment to God; an attachment of dependence on him. Real prayer is not getting God to do what we want, like bending God by holding the ear saying, “Listen here!”. Prayer is seeking to follow and find God’s will. And what does God want from you above all else? That you come to the cross of Jesus and find there forgiveness of sin and salvation; and that’s where the emphasisof Lent takes us. We close with the words from the Song: “O Lord throughout these Forty Days” (Based on Claudia F. Hernaman 1838-1898 And Gilbert e. Doan 1930-):
O Lord, throughout these forty days
You prayed and kept the fast;
Inspire repentance for our sin,
And free us from our past.
You strove with Satan, and you won;
Your faithfulness endured;
Give us your strength, your skill, and trust
In God’s eternal Word.
Though parched and hungry, yet you prayed
And fixed your mind above;
So teach us to forget our self
Since we have known God’s love.
Be with us through this season, Lord,
And all our earthly days,
That when the final Easter dawns,
We join in heaven’s praise.
We Pray For:
† Those who have plenty and those who have little, that during this time of fasting God may bring justice to the world.
† Those burdened by guilt, that they may know the joy of reconciliation.
† The church throughout the world, that it may be renewed through repentance.