The season of Lent is a time of reflection, when we remember the fasting of Jesus during his 40 days in the desert. During this time, many Christians choose to give something up, whether it's a particular food or drink, a habit, or some other behaviour.
The "giving up things for Lent" is, however, not the goal in and of itself. We give up things to be reminded of our dependence on God. I like the example Joseph Yoo uses: "Caffeine shouldn’t be the thing that compels us to live. God’s love and grace is what should compel us to live and love. Giving up coffee is not trivial at all. When that dull headache starts rolling in, we reflect on our mortality, our weakness, and our dependence on coffee (it’s only 9am — how am I getting a caffeine headache already?) which should remind us of God’s mercy and grace and presence."
And we give something up for Lent in order to pick up something else in its place. No, I don't mean giving up Netflix in order to watch YouTube instead (wink). The aim of giving up something unhelpful in our spiritual walk (such as bingeing on social media), is to replace that thing with something that will help us grow closer to the Lord (such as turning on worship music instead of opening Instagram).
It can be difficult to decide on something meaningful to abstain from. It's a very personal choice and there are no specific rules, but I do hope that if you're giving something up for Lent, that you choose something meaningful, and that you allow this period of fasting to allow the Holy Spirit to correct and realign things in your heart that have maybe gotten out of step with Him.
And now, here's today's devotional reading.
Day 11
Our Bible passage for today is Romans 2: 4 ...
Or do you despise the riches of His kindness, restraint, and patience, not recognizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?
If you've ever done something wrong, you've probably felt the guilt that goes along with it ... that twisty, churning feeling in your gut, that nagging discomfort in your brain ...
And the reason we feel this, Paul tells us in today's verse, is because of God's kindness. You see, God didn't send Jesus into the world to condemn us, but to rescue us. But He doesn't want us to continue in our sin! And so, the riches of His kindness and patience is intended to lead us to repentance (not guilt), and to run from sin.
Yes, there is judgement for sin, and we need to realise the seriousness of our sins, but thankfully, as born again Believers, we need not fear God's wrath, because in His kindness and grace He draws us toward Himself through repentance, the 180° turn away from our sin.
