Lent.
Rach J

Lent.

Lent is something I've never really understood. I mean I sort of know the basics but never really realised the reason behind it all. I knew the tradition and religion behind this time of year, but I've never engaged with it. So over the past couple of days I have thought and researched Lent. I've come to learn that Lent is basically a time of preparation before we bow before Jesus in rememberance of the great love He displayed to us the day He gave His life for us. The reason it is 40 days is because it is based on the time that Jesus spent in the wilderness being tempted by Satan for 40 days. (Matthew 4:1-11) There are so many things that blow me away when I read this passage. First of all I can see Jesus' complete humanity. He was hungry, He was indeed tempted but He never followed through. Jesus quotes scripture in order to avoid falling into temptation...something I for sure need to learn to do!



The first day of Lent is today- Ash Wednesday. This usually marks the day when we give up something that we love, or that we couldn't see ourselves living without. But does anyone really even know why we do this? I can safely say that I had no idea until I went looking for the answer. The reason for this 40 day period we call lent is to refocus our lives. It helps us to look beneath the surface of our everyday life and remember the reason why we do what we do. This period of time is for me to focus on the act that has changed my life forever.

My Saviour dying on the cross for me.

Lent is more than just giving up things. Its a time to die to one's self. Lent is the time to remove the things that have taken the place of God's love throughout the year. All of the things listed in the picture above are things that many of us love and they are good things but its when the love of these things consume us thats when it becomes a problem. Lent is a season in which we practice giving up something important in order to refocus our lives on God. By fasting from certain things, we practice dying to ourselves. And by refocusing our lives, living to God, we intentionally choose things that help us become the kind of people God desires us to be.

What I am finding so exciting about Lent is this Lent Calendar that I came across today (on facebook how ironic?!) It is from Mars Hill- Rob Bell's church. What I love about this calendar is that it allows me to experience lent by doing something everyday alongside a study. So as well as praying, reflecting, refocusing and studying God's word over this time I can do something too. There are loads of random acts of kindness throughtout this calendar. Some of them scare me and will take a lot of prayer to get me to do them. But its the oppurtunity to take risks in my everyday life, with Jesus. And I just love that. Today's experience was to paint a cross on my forehead for Ash Wednesday...admittedly I didn't do this one. The main reason being that because I'm currently sick I'm only in the house so what would be the point. (Having said that I probably wouldn't have done it anyway). But instead I am going to talk to God about my sin and ask for His forgiveness. Tomorrow is 'Don't text today- just call' there are so many amazing things on this little chart that could spark so many questions. I have the oppurtunity to touch random strangers and people who are close to my heart. I just love that! I'm really excited to do this. Alongside this experiential calendar is a lent study on Jonah which I've printed out and excited to get stuck into. I'm excited to see what God teaches me through this!

I would encourage you to fast from something this Lent, but before you do think of the reason why you're doing it! I'm sure I will blog again as I go through the calendar and I know I will be surprised by how God works through this!

Read more about lent&lent calendar check this out: http://tobeuncommon.blogspot.com/
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Head and Heart.
Rach J

Head and Heart.

Phyiscally speaking we need heads and hearts in order to have life. Our brains send messages to our heart thousands of times a day in order to keep us breathing and moving. It appears that when God created the human body He made the head and heart connected in order for us to stay alive. (I know this is a lot more complex than this but Science has never been my strong point)

So, if God intentionally created the connection between our heads and our hearts in order for us to stay alive, then it must be important!
                                                                  
Is this connection important to every aspect of our being? Emotional and Spiritual etc?

Something I have been thinking a lot about recently is this fact that my head is connected to my heart, and not so much in a biological sense but rather a spiritual sense.

A question that has ran through my head for several weeks now is...

If my head and heart aren't connected spiritually then couldn't this lead to a case of spiritual heart failure?

I have come to realise over the past year that I know a lot about God and Jesus. I know some facts, memorised some verses, know some theological quotes but I still don't live fully the way God has called me to. My life is supposed to be a fragrant offering to the Lord and more often than not it is far from it. But I have been finding this journey exciting. I've began to dream about what it would be like if I asked and persistantly prayed that God would help me to transfer what I believe to be true in my head, into my heart. Because it is only once I have believed truth in my heart that my life will become even more radical.

What if I believed deep down in my heart that the same power that conquered the grave lives in me?

Would I take (more) risks on a daily basis?
Would I be daring enough to ask someone if I could pray with them?

Over this past week (Sun-Sun) this reading from Matthew 6 has been brought to my attention 4 times. So I'm guessing its pretty important. Here Jesus is teaching about worrying and being anixous. I have been challenged a lot this week to deeply consider the reasons why I worry and the reasons why it is not ok for me to worry. It has to be said that I'm only human and I guess worry will always be a part of my life. But if I allowed God to work in my heart so that I wouldn't just know that God will take care of my every need but I would genuinely and profoundly believe that He will.

That would drasticly transform my everyday life. My faith would become more alive and passionate- - and ultimately God centred (yes that's right often faith isn't God centred even though it was God who created it and its about Him!)

There are thousands of truths that I am not even yet aware of about God. It excites me that God is mysterious, and that I will never know everything about Him. But my prayer and hearts desire is that what He does reveal to me will not just be held as knowledge in my head but that God will help me to let those truths take root in my heart.  The only way I know how to prevent spiritual heart failure at the moment is to keep a balance between knowledge and relationship. I desire to read scripture, books, listen to music, journal but I also need to take the time aside from these things to be with God.

To be still and ask Him to:

Search me, O God, and know my heart;

test me and know my anxious thoughts.

Point out anything in me that offends you,

and lead me along the path of everlasting life.
 
Psalm 139:23-24
 

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