Well hi there!

Often us Protestants get a little uneasy about things we perceive as Catholic. This is neither the time nor the place to debate age-old Protestant suspicions (and most of the time they are just suspicions!). However Lent is one of those things that tends to fall into the cavernous grey abyss of suspicion. Some Protestants do it, some don’t want to have a bar of it. Should we or shouldn’t we?

Lent is no more Roman Catholic than Easter or Christmas. Sure, Catholic, Orthodox and Anglican traditions tend to emphasise Lent. But the Church calendar is something used universally and is wonderfully enriching for giving rhythm and expression to our lives of faith.

Lent, which begins today on Ash Wednesday, runs for the forty days leading up to Easter. It is a time when Christians traditionally give up something in order to direct themselves more intentionally to the Easter story. Through denying yourself, it is a chance to participate bodily in the journey to the cross.

The real point of me writing this is to encourage as many of you as possible to join me in embarking on this forty day journey! It need not be dour and depressing either. Two of our Living Roommates, Lea and Aruni have suggested two fantastic resources to help you in your Lent journey:

40 Acts is a daily resource produced by the Stewardship charity in the UK.

Lent 2016 with Bruce Downes, the Catholic Guy is an Australian Catholic resource. I’ve signed up to this one myself.

What to do for Lent?

As I mentioned above, traditionally you give up something for Lent. Often people deny themselves something that they indulge in — something like chocolate, or coffee (I haven’t braved that one yet!). Something like this is good to do but it can also have some shortcomings — particularly if we start to resent God for taking pleasure in our denying ourselves. Also, these things don’t necessarily help us to give back or actively learn to love God or others better! Instead, of merely giving up something, think about how you can use Lenten disciplines to become a more faithful disciple.

Here are a few ideas:

• Sign up to one of the above resources
• Try to pray and/or read scripture daily…Luke’s gospel would be a great option as we are reflecting on Luke at the Living Room!
• Challenge yourself to give a certain amount in the offering each week, or commit money to a cause you care about
• Try to meet at least one person at church or in the community every week. Pray for them. Start to build relationships with them.
• Wherever possible, buy fair-trade products.
• Do something sacrificial for the environment. For example eat less meat (I’m doing this one!), or give up disposable plastic (or perhaps just disposable bags to begin with), or bike to work/uni each day.

You may have your own ideas — if it’s a particularly good one, and you want to share it, please do so below!

I look forward to making the journey to the cross with you.

Blessings this Lent,

Jordan