Sane, Simple, Sacred: Lent: Both/And

Lent: Both/And

...three crosses on our mantel...

I have a blogging friend who has decided to give up opinions for Lent. She has explained her decision in previous posts and locked it in in THIS one. She refers to Lent as "six glorious weeks". Personally, I can't imagine that refraining from opinions for six weeks could ever be glorious. I fear I would fail with such frequency that I would give up LONG before the six glorious weeks were finished! But it got me to thinking....

Commenting briefly on her post this morning, I wrote: "I have about 12 hours to decide if and from what I will 'abstain' for the Six Glorious Weeks. I'm leaning toward an add-on rather than a subtraction, however. Maybe Both/And - as did our Lord those 40 days.... 'not bread alone/every word that proceeds from the mouth of God'.

Meanwhile (and on the subject of Lent) Scotty Ward Smith tweeted: "To equate Lent with legalism is similar to equating water with drowning. There's the right use, misuse, and abuse of most things."

I come from a church background that doesn't observe Lent in the traditional ways. This DOES not and WILL not keep me from intensifying my focus on the Christ whose passion resulted in my eternal salvation. I want to - I NEED to - "use" Lent rightly.

5 comments:

carol longenecker hiestandMarch 5, 2014 at 2:00 PM
i like this Rebecca. Lent, for me (who did not grown up in a tradition that observed Lent, as you know) has become a time to focus on that which keeps from distant from God. Been doing a lot of thinking about it. will probably end up being a post, but not processed enough to write sensibly today., Thinking of you this morning and your family as you walk the journey with your aging parents, as many of us are.
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TamaraMarch 8, 2014 at 5:51 PM
I added something for Lent... that would allow me to subtract something... Our son will be released from prison during the 38th day of Lent (April 17th). I am daily praying that the Lord will take from me my need to control my son's life and would do whatever (and I do mean whatever) is necessary to draw him (our son) unto Him.. It is a frightening prayer of sorts and relinquishing has never been my strong point. May it ever be! ~ Amen!
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elaine @ peace for the journeyMarch 13, 2014 at 9:33 PM
Letting go of something in order to take hold of something ... that's always been my focus during Lent.
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"We simplify, not just to be less busy, even though we may be right to pursue that. Rather, we simplify to remove distractions from our pursuit of Christ. We prune activities from our lives, not only to get organized, but also that our devotion to Christ and service for His kingdom will be more fruitful. We simplify, not merely to save time, but to eliminate hindrances to the time we devote to knowing Christ. All the reasons we simplify should eventually lead us to Jesus Christ!" (Donald S. Whitney)

Dedicated to my sister-in-law, Beth--a TRUE home manager....

"I work for a King. He has put me in charge of his home. When He comes to see how I have managed His possessions and His children, I do not want to be found wanting. I want to do my best. Everything I have is on loan from Him. I have room and board and a job to do, but it is all for Him. Therefore I want to dress my best and do my best in all my work. I also want to be creative, for this is a sincere attempt to glorify Him and His beautiful creation. How I manage my home is a form of worship to Him." --Lydia Sherman

"A man should hear a little music, read a little poetry,
and see a fine picture every day of his life,
in order that worldly cares may not obliterate the sense of the beautiful which God has implanted in the human soul."

~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Contentment makes poor men rich.

-Benjamin Franklin

"What I am gradually discovering is that in the writing I come in touch with the Spirit of God." ~ Nouwen

~~"Reading without reflecting is like eating without digesting."~~Edmund Burke

C.S. Lewis: "To trust Him means, of course, trying to do all that He says. There would be no sense in trusting a person if you wouldn't take his advice. Thus if you have really handed yourself over to Him, it must follow that you are trying to obey Him."

"To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages, with open heart; to study hard; to think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await occasions, hurry never; in a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common--this is my symphony." William Henry Channing

“Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

The Apostle Paul: "But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 3:13-14)

"It's a good thing to have all the props pulled out from under us occasionally. It gives us some sense of what is rock under our feet, and what is sand. It stops us from taking anything for granted. It has also taught me alot about living in the immediate moment. I am somehow managing to live one day, one hour at a time." Madeleine L'Engle

FIVE CERTAINTIES
WITH WHICH TO
START YOUR DAY

God holds you. Each day he carries us in his arms. Psalm 68:19 NLT
God sustains you. THE LORD is my Shepherd [to feed, guide, and shield me], I shall not lack. Psalm 23:1 AMP
God covers you. He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings shall you trust. Psalm 91:4 AMP
God pours His love upon you. Through each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me. Psalm 42:8 NLT
God will not fail you. The unfailing love of the Lord never ends! Lamentations 3:22 NLT

THE BLOGGER'S PRAYER Lord, help me to learn to spell without spellcheck, manage to visit all that visit me, and post regularly - all in 5 minutes a day, so that I can clean house and take care of my family. Help me to not look at every occurrence in my life as a blog post, and to quit taking pictures of weird things to share as well. Please Lord, help me to stop talking about my blog friends as though they are next door neighbors or someone I have known all of my life. And help me, dear Lord, to think of something witty and wise to post tomorrow.
Love, The Dust Bunny Hostage

Sane, Simple, Sacred

Mercy

Lent: Both/And

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