I have had a lot of conversations about Lent the last few days. When I left the Catholic Church, the rebellious child in me rejoiced in not feeling obligated to observe Lent. I rejoiced in knowing that my salvation was secure and there was nothing I had to do to keep it that way. There were no longer any religious hoops for me to jump through. And I liked it that way. Then I grew up.
Suddenly my understanding of what it means to be a Christian--to seek to be Christ-like--changed dramatically. I realized that if I internalized the Gospel so that my everyday life could begin to look like Christ, then I had some eternal obligations that were much greater than those any man or religious institution could impose upon me. The nonconformist in me doesn't have to conform. She has to be transformed. That is so much harder.
Maybe this is why, as an adult, Lent speaks to my heart. The intentionality of sacrifice. A set time in which the giving up aligns with the giving in. A time in which we can work out for ourselves in tangible ways the concept of sacrifice. A concept that goes against my human nature. My humanity seeks the easy. So this year, that is my focus for Lent. I will forsake the easy in my walking around life. I will stop defaulting to the easy outs in my life--foods, conversations, excuses. I will stop looking for corners to cut. In these forty days, I will seek to tear down my little altars to little gods I often unknowingly constructed, so that my life itself becomes a living altar to a Christ who stepped down off the cross to live in me.
This year, I sacrifice the easy.
Suddenly my understanding of what it means to be a Christian--to seek to be Christ-like--changed dramatically. I realized that if I internalized the Gospel so that my everyday life could begin to look like Christ, then I had some eternal obligations that were much greater than those any man or religious institution could impose upon me. The nonconformist in me doesn't have to conform. She has to be transformed. That is so much harder.
Maybe this is why, as an adult, Lent speaks to my heart. The intentionality of sacrifice. A set time in which the giving up aligns with the giving in. A time in which we can work out for ourselves in tangible ways the concept of sacrifice. A concept that goes against my human nature. My humanity seeks the easy. So this year, that is my focus for Lent. I will forsake the easy in my walking around life. I will stop defaulting to the easy outs in my life--foods, conversations, excuses. I will stop looking for corners to cut. In these forty days, I will seek to tear down my little altars to little gods I often unknowingly constructed, so that my life itself becomes a living altar to a Christ who stepped down off the cross to live in me.
This year, I sacrifice the easy.
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