“ . . . let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles . . .” (Hebrews 12:1).
The season of Lent is over, and we are now in the season of Easter. What a joy it is to know that we serve a risen Savior and have a marked time to reflect upon God’s gift to us. However, I want to share something about Lent. During the season of Lent, I chose something to give up in order to have the time mean more to me and follow the direction that Lent is suppose to leads us—identifying with the suffering of Christ. Although, there is really nothing we really can do that will ever equal the suffering of Christ and the ultimate sacrifice he made for us, I feel our trying does indicate our desire to identify with him.
As Lent approached, I tried to decide what to give up but was not coming up with anything. On Ash Wednesday, I came by the church early to get my ashes since I had to work that evening. Bro. Grover had agreed to meet me, and briefly we went through the liturgy together. One of the passages we read revealed during Lent we are to reflect through prayer, fasting, and meditation. There it was, what I was going to give up.
I decided I would fast one day a week during Lent. Until this point, I have never given up food intentionally unless I was sick. I got online, read about fasting, and made my plan to eliminate solid food but allowed myself liquids such as coffee, juice and diet drinks. With little prayers for help when my stomach wanted to know what was going on, I made it thought Lent fasting on Thursdays.
Scripture tells us that we are to fast and pray in private, not to do them for show or brag about what we are doing. It was, however, kind of hard not to say what I was doing when my mama wanted to know why I was not eating. Also, I want to relate something that happened and what I thought about. One of the Thursdays I was fasting, our grandsons were staying with Lance and me. As I helped Lance get their breakfast ready, I absentmindedly took a bite of a pig-in-the-blanket. After I realized what I had done, I spit the bite out. Later in the day at snack time, I ate a pretzel, again without paying attention to what I was doing. I didn’t put myself through a guilt trip, but I did think about my absentminded eating and how Satan works in our lives. He stands by waiting for a chance, and in our weak moments we absentmindedly allow him in. Before we realize it, we are not listening to the Holy Spirit and not following God’s will. We let the “little sins” find a place in our lives, and we selfishly “do our own thing,” not thinking of the consequences. These sins may not be egregious, but as spiritual writer Jerry Bridges reminds us, sin is sin. Bridges calls these sins “respectable sins.” I try to discipline myself daily to be on watch, but there is no way I can do it on my own. As I prayed when I got hungry, I pray daily for help. Let’s all be on guard for Satan and the sin he can introduce into our lives, those sins that keep us from God’s will, those little sins, those respectable sins.
