The journey begins..
Grace Church invites you to enter into the Christian season of Lent as a way of preparing our hearts for the work of Christ on our behalf through his death on the Cross and his Resurrection three days later.
What is Lent?
A period of forty days (not including Sundays) between Ash Wednesday and Easter.
An opportunity to prepare our hearts for Good Friday and Easter. A time of going deeper with God.
While “Lent” is not in the Bible, it is modeled after Jesus’ temptation in the desert (Mt. 4:1-11). There Jesus prayed and fasted and was strengthened for ministry for forty days.
There are traditionally three areas of focus – prayer, fasting, and giving.
Prayer during Lent focuses on our need for God’s forgiveness. It’s also about repenting (turning away from our sins) and receiving God’s mercy and love.
Fasting from food, or any other thing in our lives help us remember Christ’s sacrifice for us.
Giving or serving others is a response to God’s grace and is a reminder of how Christ served throughout his ministry.
The ashes received on Ash Wednesday are a sign of our mortality that from dust we came to dust we shall return.
Nothing we do earns us salvation, no fasting or any other practice during Lent makes us deserving of grace. Only the shed blood of Christ brings us into relationship with God.
“A journey, a pilgrimage! Yet, as we begin it, as we make the first step into the “bright sadness” of Lent, we see – far away—the destination. It is the joy of Easter, it is the entrance into the glory of the kingdom." -Alexander Schmemann
We will be sharing devotionals throughout Lent which will be available on the website every Wednesday and hard copies will be available the following Sunday. These are the subjects of these devotionals:
First Week – “What happens when we give things up for Lent?”
Second Week – “What does baptism have to do with Lent?”
Third Week – “What does repentance look like?”
Fourth Week – “Why is loving others such an important part of Lent?”
Fifth Week – “How does Lent help us in dealing with temptations?”
Sixth Week – Holy Week – “How does this last week of Lent prepare us for Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday?”
Come join us as we set out on this journey together, with our eyes fixed on Christ and on His finished work that lies ahead. And as we set out let us consider, "how may I best prepare myself for what lies ahead?" (Isaiah 66:1-2).