Lent for the Weary
Thinking through a time-honored church tradition for those who can hardly practice it
I want to talk about Lent.
There are so many ways we could dive into it, especially for those of us who like myself may not have had any experience with it growing up (except for knowing it was “Catholic”). But like many around the world right now, I am already feeling worn down. Lent feels like one more hard thing, one more area in which we are being asked do without.
And so the most pressing thing I want to say about Lent in this moment is that it is meant to be life-giving.
Several years ago I read the book, Living the Christian Year. It was the gateway drug that led me into an intoxication with church liturgy and following the church calendar, which I didn’t grow up with at all. James K.A. Smith would argue that I did in fact grow up with liturgy (the habits and practices of all our lives and institutions that shape what we worship) but as a matter of church tradition, mine was non-denominational with a Baptist leaning. In other words, decidedly void of liturgy. I don’t bemoan this or feel disgruntled about it. And perhaps in part because I was not steeped in it growing up and therefore didn’t experience the deadness or ritualistic tendencies inherent to any practice, I am drawn to the beauty and formation of the liturgical year.
I used to think of Lent as a depressing, morose experience. And the truth is there are parts of it that can appear that way. There is a focus on repentance, on our mortality, and on some form of self-denial. But I’m learning that more than anything, as I said above, Lent is meant to be life-giving. Let me explain how.
The practice of Lent is meant to get us ready to celebrate Easter in its fullness. It’s a gift really. There are so many events in life that are made that much richer, fuller, more meaningful and inhabitable by spending time preparing for them. And Easter, arguably the most important holiday for Christians, is no different. Spending 40 days leading up to the Holy Triduum (Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday) by inhabiting different practices that prepare us for this celebration can bring life and renewal we would otherwise miss.
One word I am dwelling on this year for Lent is, notice. I got this in part from a Lenten youth curriculum I found, where they teach basic practices of faith around this concept of “noticing.” To inhabit the season of Lent means to take part in a few simple disciplines that help our busy, distracted selves look up and take notice.
Notice God— in worship
Notice ourselves— in repentance
Notice others— in acts of love
We want to notice what God is saying to us, paying attention to the life of Jesus and what he has done and is doing.
We want to notice ourselves on a deeper level- what we need to repent and turn from, where we need restoration and reconciliation.
We want to notice those around us- who is in need, who is hurting, who have we neglected, who we can serve.
And after we’ve spent 40 days taking the time to notice, Easter comes and we find our hearts are tuned, our gaze has been lifted, our celebration is real.
Lent is also a journey. In some ways it’s the only journey many of us will be taking this year. I for one, am sorely missing places of beauty, nature, my extended family and friends, and getting out of this concrete jungle we live in. In some ways, the last thing I want is to give all that up for a spiritual journey instead. But this is, ironically, the heart of Lent: joining Jesus in his journey to the cross. We face our limitations, our disappointments, our sufferings, and we start to see them in the shadow of our Savior’s life.
I had a rough Ash Wednesday, in all honesty. By the end of it, I was feeling disappointed and sad and discouraged. As I ended the day, it occurred to me that this is what fasting and filling it with prayer is supposed to do—lead me to Jesus in my sadness, my grief, my failure. Lent is a way to walk through the valleys we are already in and lift our gaze to the light that is hitting the tips of the hills. The sunrise is coming.
Lent is simple in its approach. Not easy—but simple. There are three practices to take up that can aid us in our journey. Fasting. Prayer. Scripture. I’ll share a few resources that have been helpful to me or others in pursuing these three things during Lent.
Fasting
I’ve recently been sharing with my kids, on repeat it seems, that fasting is not about just finding something to give up. It’s intended to create space in you— in an otherwise distracted or filled up area— so you can pay attention to God. I want them to understand this, because fasting can so easily become something that we either feel guilty or self-righteous or just plain ambivalent about.
I have tried everything from saying no to coffee, sugar, purchasing, social media, to an actual food fast. I find them all difficult.
The point is, choose something that will create space in your life so you can take notice. And fill that space with turning your attention to prayer, Scripture meditation, reading a specific book, serving someone else.
Prayer
Pray the Psalms…Psalm 51 is traditionally an excellent place to start during Lent.
The prayer of examen (a spiritual practice from Ignatius of Loyola) is a helpful way to end the day with noticing: where God was present, what you can thank him for, where you were struggling, where he wants to meet you.
One thing I have done (at the end of the day, or beginning of the next) is to list out in bullet points all the things that I felt disappointed about. Then, after reading through Psalm 51, I’ll read back over my list, taking each instance to either confess the sin it revealed in me, or offer it up as a “broken sacrifice” to God if it’s something out of my control. It has helped me to name and notice what is going on in me, where it may be coming from, and how I can turn toward Jesus in it.
Prayer In the Night: Tish Harrison Warren’s new book on prayer in suffering, using a part of compline, would be a great companion for this season.
Scripture
The Dwell Bible app has a daily guide for Lent.
Living the Christian Year gives weekly Scripture/devotional guides for Lent (and the entire church calendar).
A Habit Called Faith (I haven’t read this yet): I’ve heard many people recommend this as a helpful companion read for Lent.
The Cost of Discipleship—a favorite of mine. Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s walk through The Sermon on the Mount. Reading a chapter a day would take you through Lent.
The gospels. Immerse yourself in the story of Jesus.
The Light Has Come—Lesslie Newbigin’s commentary on the gospel of John. It reads more like an intelligent, thoughtful devotional (and international in scope as Newbigin was a missionary to India for several decades) than a purely scholarly approach.
In a season that already seems so full of loss, I hope that participating in Lent can be a source of renewed life It is the Spirit of God that gives us this life, and all we can aim or hope to do is put ourselves in a position to receive it.
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