Too much Lent

Today begins the season of Lent. It is the 40 days, minus Sundays, preceding Easter.
I have come to this season with a different approach.
Lent can be such a downer, I know I am broken, sinful, dispicable, less than useful Christian, filled with hypocrisy, focused upon perfection instead of grace, I eat too much which brings me into gluttony, selfish. I know all of this and I am self aware of my own limitations. Even though I feel at times a god unto myself...I know that it fails.

However, there is this promise. The promise is that God will use those things to bring about Kingdom of God. The very things, I hate God will use to bring about grace. Paul as they stoned Stephen hated Christians because they were less than pure in their practice and theology of Judaism...Jesus called Paul to be a minister to gentiles. Dirty, filthy gentiles who before he was on the road to Damascus would have never associated.

So, what will I do this lent? I think I will add some disciplines instead of trying to rid myself of my baggage. I am going to eat better this 40 days. 10 days before the NYC marathon, man i ate really well and I felt GREAT. I mean, I felt really good. So, why don't I eat well...SLOTH. However, I am going to do something that makes me feel great. Yes, that is narcissistic spirituality, but I think God wants good for me. The 7-11 Brownies, ohh so tasty, are not really the best thing for me three times a week. So, I will eat better. I will exercise more.

Spiritually, I am going to pray some more. One year, during Holy Week, I spent Monday and Tuesday in prayer. I said, "Its Holy Week, we eat bread, drink wine, kill Jesus, and then he is raised from the dead. Everybody knows the story and to prepare myself for telling the story, I don't need to fix bulletins, worship services, I need to pray and read that story more deeply." It was awesome, hung out at a monastery and it provided clarity.

So, be bold this Lent. Take a step back and do the courageous thing engage your faith and Jesus.

joy,
Guido