If we do not pay attention to our souls, our capacity to be open to God’s creative work in our lives is diminished. The season of Lent presents an opportunity to reflect on the state of our souls before God, the contour of our lives with others, and, above all, the prevailing promise of Jesus’ resurrected life as it breathes new life, new courage, new hope in us and through us, for the sake of the world.
Why Lent?, Kai Nilsen
How do you get yourself ready for remembering Jesus’ death and celebrating his resurrection at Easter? Lent provides us with an opportunity to prepare our hearts as we anticipate Easter. If you are looking for something new to try this year, here is an assortment of resources you could use this Lent as you prepare your heart for Easter.
- The quote above comes from an article by Kai Nilsen, both of his Lent devotionals (Less is More and Engage) are available as free pdfs through the linked Renovare website. Both books offer daily scriptures and reflective questions for you to work through with God from Ash Wednesday to Easter Sunday.
- For the more visual, the Lent Reflections resource is a wonderful way to be reminded each time you look at the beautiful card and change it over of the incredible gift Easter is. Each card has a verse and reflection.
- For a creative Lent activity, Praying in Colour has several sheets you can download and use for colouring as you reflect on the approach of Easter. These are very adaptable to many contexts and uses.
- For those who find music helps you to connect with God, Renovare and Christianity Today have partnered to produce a free devotional and webinar for Lent called The Wondrous Cross: Reflections on Christ’s Sacrifice Drawn from the Songs and Hymns of Easter. When you register for the webinar you will be sent access to download the devotional which includes weekly reflections on hymns and scriptures leading up to Easter, with accompanying playlist.
- Offering celebration and self-examination, the devotional Journey To The Cross, by Paul David Tripp, is brilliant. Moving through mourning to joy, the devotional offers daily readings encouraging “us to abide in the abundant joy found in Christ as we encounter the Savior more fully and follow him more faithfully during this Lenten season”.
- I’m looking forward to using the devotional Bitter and Sweet, by Tsh Oxenreider this Lent. “The practice isn’t about proving our worth or earning God’s love; it’s about remembering how dependent we are on our Maker while we live here in our temporary, fragile bodies.” Tsh engages many of the senses each day with songs and images integrated into the daily practices.
What will you do to draw near this Lenten season?
Lent is about remembering the suffering and sacrifice
Journey to the Cross, Paul David Tripp
of the Savior. Lent is about confessing our ongoing battle with
sin. Lent is about fasting, and not just from food; we willingly
and joyfully let go of things in this world that have too much of a
hold on us. And Lent is about giving ourselves in a more focused
way to prayer, crying out for the help that we desperately need
from the only one who is able to give it.
Deeply Formed 