The Sacrifice of Lent

As I was reviewing some memory verses lately, Ephesians 4:29 stopped me in my tracks.  “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”  (NIV)

With Ash Wednesday approaching, it dawned on me that  in view of God’s mercy to me through the cross, I could offer my words as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God as a spiritual act of worship.  Not conforming any longer to the pattern of this world (which justifies the flinging of letters under the guise of “personal expression” and “freedom of speech”), but - wow - to be transformed by the renewing of my mind.  (Rom. 12:1-2, NIV, not word for word)  What would happen if I truly thought about what I was going to say before I said it?  Thought about how those words will make an impact.  Will they be a relational withdrawal, will they take a piece away from that person’s (fragile?) God-made image?  Or will they be words that build that person up and benefit them in their walk with Christ?

I have “given up things for lent” many a times in the past.  And the discipline of this fasting has proven beneficial in different ways (Hopefully I will have a future post on my fasting experiences).  In years of late I have strove to have my mindset be more of a sacrifice in order to redirect my thoughts onto the deep, painful sacrifice of my Savior on my behalf – something I too often take for granted.  When I am tempted in that specific way, make the suffering of Jesus for my sake be my focus, instead of that temporal satisfaction.  This transforming of my mind has proven more challenging than the actual "giving it up" itself.

And yet, it’s only a day in to this sacrificial fast and already three times the type of words I committed to giving up are the words that have poured out of this fount which can’t decide if it wants to house fresh water or salt water! (James 3)  Oh, dear brothers and sisters, these things ought not to be so…thank you, Jesus, for your righteous work on the cross for me.  

I exhort you in this spiritual act of worship – Go before God and seek Him for Guidance in what He would want you to sacrifice in order to draw closer in intimacy with Him.  What part of you would you willingly lay on the altar, the refiner’s fire, in order for Him to take away the impurities and re-create you to look a little more like His Suffering Servant-Son, Jesus?

Banter

Continued from original "Lent" thoughts...

I have two friends whom I banter with like sisters.  This is an email I wrote to one of them regarding my Lent Sacrifice.  

So today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the Lenten season.  "Giving up
something for Lent" may be baggage you have from your Catholic background.  I have my own baggage on it from my Methodist background, but  in the past several years, choosing something as a sacrifice to remind me of the sacrifice of my savior is a spiritual practice, I have found freeing,
humbling, and rewarding.  I wanted to share my sacrifice of this season with you.  I recently had Ephesians 4:29 laid on my heart, "Do not let any
unwholesome talk come out of your mouth but only what is useful for building others up according to their needs that it may benefit those who listen."  I want to sacrifice my words to Jesus for the next 40 days and pray that each time I am tempted for something that is unwholesome, not building up or benefitting someone that it refines my tongue in such a way, that after 40 days my lips will flow with the words Jesus would have spoken more naturally!

I tell you this for three reasons:

1)      This commitment will affect the way I speak with you and you will
probably notice and I wanted you to know what's up with that.  I have been especially convicted lately that my words have been way too loose with you.  I am committed to only speaking words that build you up and benefit you!  So no more engaging in banter with youJ

2)      As one who I speak with regularly, I ask for your accountability,
dear sister.

3)      I invite you to join me.  I understand this is my conviction and not
yours, so I leave it between you and God.  If there is something else he
wants you to sacrifice, that is great.  If He shares a reason He doesn't
want you to give up something for Lent, I will respect that, too.  I just
know building habits like this is like working out - sometimes easier with a partnerJ

Love, Jill

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And her response was that she would pray about it; then that she didn't feel a strong leading; she's got a spiritual formation book that keeps bringing up stuff; and she's not sure what I mean by banter.  When I used the specific example from a recent evening of our bantering, she seemed shocked.  In her mind it was harmless teasing. In my heart sarcasm usually has a root and it's more healthy for me to avoid it completely, for when I start getting sarcastic my words too easily fly into words that tear down rather than build up and hurt rather than benefit (or I end up on the receiving end of it.)

So then I got off the phone and felt like I failed at fulfilling Ephesians 4:29 because my explanation itself made her feel guilty!   AHHHHHH!!!

So this was my response...

Failure and Grace

An email following up my falter in my Lent commitment:

Dear Friend,

I guess I failed at Eph. 4:29 again already today – I have a feeling I didn’t leave you feeling built up and I have a feeling I didn’t benefit your walk with Christ if I left you feeling guilty.  A skilled teacher is able to meet someone where they are and help them take the next step.  I’m still having my skills refined.  I think Beth is much better there than I am.  I am too quick to see people’s potential, that I think I don’t assess where they are as well.   But know that was my intention – using the lent season to help us grow in the area of the words of our mouth; what I hoped to communicate was “wherever God had you there” not “what it looks like for me”  OR if God had another aspect of your “process of holiness” for you to sacrifice in this season in order to better embrace the sacrifice of Christ (because I know that’s a weakness of mine and I think for others as well).  I just think we can get overwhelmed by all of our areas of unrighteousness that it can be beneficial to focus on just one for the 40 days of lent in hopes that it breaks the bad habits and builds new ones, to refine us to look more like that Savior who sacrificed His Life on our behalf.  Hope that explains more of where I’m coming from and helps relieve the guilt that Jesus does NOT want to be there!

In His Grip of Grace as He picks me up from my falter,

Love Always,

~jill><>

And a follow-up thought on this!