Get Ready for a Journey to Easter

picture of daffodils by Tim Gouw- Unsplash

I appreciate taking a slow, thoughtful, prayerful, heart-cleaning journey to Easter.  It is a spring cleaning for my heart that renews my spiritual focus.

Did you know that the early Christian church started this practice for new converts?  They chose a 40-day model because the Bible records significant 40-day spiritual encounters. Consider the time Moses spent 40 days on Mt. Sinai listening to God, or Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness, where he overcame Satan’s temptations.

 Today, we call this practice Lent.  The word comes from the Anglo-Saxon lencten, meaning "lengthening," referring to the lengthening days of spring as we look forward to Easter.  Lent has evolved into a voluntary, disciplined journey to Easter that includes fasting, prayer, scripture, and service.  Each component comes from the way Jesus lived his life.

When I discovered this 7-week process, it was transformative, especially knowing others were participating at the same time.  That’s why I always commit this blog to seven weeks of a Lent practice.

Book cover with flames of fire at the top and a cross at the bottom.

This year, I have something very special to offer: my newest book is a Lent devotional. I wrote  A Consuming Fire as my prayer that all of us will open ourselves to God’s spring-cleaning of our hearts, minds, priorities, and loves.  What we allow God to remove makes room for something new that enriches our lives.

If you are interested in taking this journey using  A Consuming Fire, you can order the book through Foundry, the publisher, or from Amazon or your favorite Christian book supplier.   Please note that  Foundry offers a bundle

of 10 books for a significantly reduced price.   Take advantage of it for your small group.  Share it with your Sunday School class and read it together.

Whether you purchase the book or simply follow the weekly blogs, here’s how to invite God’s spring-cleaning.

Let go of something that hinders growth.

Prayerfully ask God to identify something you need to remove for 40 days to make time to study and hear from God.  This fasting identifies an attitude, habit, or time-waster.  Ask God to help replace it with something that pleases Him.   

·      

Set aside time.

Set aside time during the day for a Lent-themed devotional reading that includes scripture and reflection questions.

Make prayer a critical component.

 God generously keeps before us what we need to address, get rid of, or add to our life.  During this prayer time, listen more than you talk.

·      

Consider a way to serve others.

Many Lent practices suggest that we consider a service activity. It could involve volunteering at a community charity or for a church ministry.  It could be as simple as connecting with a neighbor. When God does His spring cleaning in our lives, we have time to do more of His work.

I’ll send weekly devotionals that relate to the themes in A Consuming Fire.  Remember, the goal of this time is to be more receptive to everything Jesus wants us to live through him. This isn’t simply self-improvement; it is God-directed growth. It involves how we think, love, serve, and understand who we are in Christ.

May God be our  Heart-cleaner during these 40 days.

May He instruct us on what to remove that will help us draw closer to Him.

May He empower us to make His mission to the world, ours as well.

How will you take this thoughtful, prayerful journey?  What do you hope to learn on the way?  I’d love to hear how God is working in your heart and life as I continue to share how He is working in mine.

flames of fire