| March 2025 It’s hard to believe that the Lenten Season is now upon us. Lent lasts for 40 days and reminds Christians of Jesus’s wilderness experience that would eventually launch his earthly ministry filled with teachings that would culminate in His crucifixion for our sins and victory over death in resurrection. Easter represents the MOST significant Christian holiday, the resurrection of God in the flesh who came to be our Savior. When I was in college, I took note that many of my Christian friends had to report to their parents what they would be “giving up” during Lent. I have been American Baptist my whole life, so the practice of deeply understanding Lent or having a disciplined time of giving up anything, was not a part of my tradition. After hearing about this year after year, I decided during my Senior year, to give up something for Lent. I chose ice cream. Ice Cream you say? Why ice cream? I love ice cream, especially when the warm Spring days merge into Summer, there’s always room for ice cream. I am guessing that Jesus may have even been smiling or laughing at me that I would give up something that brings me such enjoyment. I shared with my close friends that I would be walking this journey of giving something up with them during Lent and I announced that it would be ice cream. Well, you can guess, I started out well. One day led to a few days that led to over a week. I was almost completing week two when I started to convince myself that it would be “okay” to give up on my giving up and to have an ice cream cone. Classes had become intense, and I deserved a treat. It would be ice cream. I headed to a local diner with my friends and announced that since I was Baptist, that I had decided to have some ice cream. One of my dear friends decided to pipe up and say, “No you’re not!” and he smiled. I was stunned. Again, I was thinking that I am Baptist, and I don’t need to abide by something outside my tradition. I relented and did not order the ice cream cone. Over the next several weeks, every time I had moments of weakness and longed for my favorite dessert, my circle of friends would not allow me to give in. When the day after Easter came around, my friends treated me to my favorite sundae at Friendly’s. (Anyone remember Friendly’s?) Maybe ice cream isn’t something life altering, but for me, it was a new discipline of restraint that was a challenge, and I was young. Jesus might not ask me to give up ice cream, but Scriptures suggest for me to give up things like envy, insecurities, gossip, anger, or jealousy. Where are the areas of darkness and sin in my life that keep me from focusing on Jesus as the Light of the world and what keeps me for allowing Christ’s light to shine through me? What are your thoughts of focus on this Lenten Season? What is God telling you to “give up” to bring honor and glory to Him not only in this season, but in everyday life? As believers, remember this. We look to this time of Lent as a way to go into our own ‘wilderness’ of sorts; we pray, we fast, we meditate, we worship, we focus on God. We ready ourselves for the grief of Christ’s death, and we take joy in the gospel of His rising again. We are granted eternal life through Christ; the Messiah who was “given up” to bring us redemption. |
A word from Executive Minister, Rev. Patty King Bilyeu
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