This Baptist is Observing Lent

I challenged our Bible study group to participate in Lent this year. Several verbally committed. I'm looking forward to the changes in our lives.

The season of Lent is intended for our spiritual development. It's a time to draw near to God through confession, repentance, and service.

The "giving up" is a pathway but it often gets top billing. The reason for fasting is to allow time and resources for drawing near to God. We should be careful not to focus on the fast but on God who awaits along the way and at the end of the fast.

I'm cutting out sweets and sodas in order to get healthy. This will allow me to stay in ministry longer and be more effective while doing it.

I'm reducing time spent doing social media in order to give more time to study and make personal contact with members and prospects. Cutting back 50% so I'll only be on 12 hours a day.

Here's how to participate in Lent. First, confess your sins. Ask God to give you his list of your sins (Ps 139:23-24). Confess them with the expectation that God will forgive you (1 John 1:9). And be serious about it. When you realize how holy God is and how sinful you are, any other approach to confession falls short (James 4:8-10).

Second, find something to fast from. The purpose of fasting is to eliminate distractions that can hinder a person drawing near to God. Today, the fast during Lent is symbolic in that the person abstains from something for the forty days, experiencing the power of God to do so and spending the time and/or money focusing on God through Bible reading, prayer, and service.