In many evangelical churches, Lent is by and large ignored.  Yet ignoring Lent is hazardous to your health.  When we ignore Lent, we are really ignoring Jesus’ death on the cross and resurrection from the grave.  Let me explain why.

Lent is the 40 day season of the Christian calendar before Easter where Christians actively practice repentance.  As such, Lent doesn’t get much publicity from the pulpit or the pew.  Nobody likes repenting because nobody likes to feel guilty over their actions.  We prefer “3 Steps to a Happier Life,” or “The 5 Keys to Make Our Lives Better.”   When those don’t work, we prefer to blame others for our bad behavior.  It’s really easy to do.  All we have to do is place our sins in the category of “I was misunderstood,” or cleanse our sins by renaming them as “unintentional.”  The truth is we avoid repentance because we have an identity to maintain.  We like seeing ourselves as essentially “good” people who happen to slip up now and again.  If we confess we really are a “bad” person, we will lose our identity.  So because we don’t want to lose this identity we don’t like repentance which is what Lent is all about.

Yet, when we downplay our relational sin that is driven by our desire for satisfaction now at whatever cost to others, we end up downplaying the cross and resurrection.  You see if we don’t really have a desperate and personal need for Jesus’ sacrifice for our own sin, then we don’t really have a need for Jesus to die and rise again on our behalf.  If we don’t have a compelling need for Jesus, then our Easter celebrations will continue to focus on colored eggs, chocolate, and a strange bunny that lays eggs.

We need Lent in order to help us regain our posture of worship before Jesus.  The purpose of Lent isn’t so we can all feel bad for a time, but rather the purpose of Lent is to help make us more like Jesus.  In order to motivate us to celebrate Lent, let’s read one of John’s letters again.  Here’s how John coaches us in his first letter:

1John 1:5    This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all.  6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

1John 1:8    If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.

John tells us that if we are going to walk with God, we need to repudiate all darkness.  In order to repudiate all darkness, we need to begin by confessing the darkness in our own heart.  The evil that should be most troublesome to us isn’t the evil in the world outside of us, but the evil that resides in our own hearts.  Lent gives us a structure to help us confess this evil.  That’s why a Lent that is focused on giving up coffee or ice cream is insufficient on its own.  The thing that we choose to give up for Lent should work to call attention to our need for repentance – to confess the darkness that remains in our own heart.  When we repent, we can get on with walking with God in the light.

Yet, when we confess our sins the thing we fear most does occurs.  We do indeed lose our identity as a “good” person.  However, a new and better thing happens as a result.  John tells us in verse 9 that if we confess our sins Jesus will forgive us.  What we gain in repentance far outweighs what we lose.  We lose an identity that is consumed by self.  What we gain is a new identity that is consumed by Christ.  Therefore, we can be called pure and holy as a result of Christ’s death on the cross and his resurrection from the grave.  In the face of our own darkness, that change is worth celebrating!  This kind of repentance isn’t life-sapping, instead it is life-giving!

So here are 8 things we can give up for Lent that help us practice the life-giving act of repentance:

1. Procrastination – Let your desire to put off what needs to be done lead you to confess that what you really want is to be served.  Instead take action on doing the things you are supposed to do in order to take on the character of Christ who served us.
2. Television – Let your desire for distraction at the end of the day lead you to confess that what you really want is to avoid the hard stuff in your life.  Instead, let the silence lead you to find your rest in the story God is telling in your life.
3. Food – Let the desire for a meal or a particular kind of food lead you to confess your desire for satisfaction here on earth.  Instead let the absence of a meal or a particular kind of food help you embrace being a stranger who longs for your home with God.
4. Complaining – Let your desire to complain lead you to confess your entitlement to live an easy life.  Instead accept the Spirit’s empowering work in you to love others no matter what circumstances you face.
5. Sleeping In – Let your desire for comfort lead you to confess that you would rather be comfortable than have Jesus do what it takes to refine your character.  Instead, get up early and use the time to seek Jesus’ heart for you and how he wants to shape your life.
6. Buying Something You Want, but Don’t Need – Let your desire for a want lead you to confess your false hope in the things of this world to bring you happiness.  Instead let the unmet want turn your heart to crave the happiness Jesus gives.
7. Not Saying What Our Hearts Are Thinking – Let your desire to play it safe in relationships lead you to repent of your self-protection.  Instead find ways to love and bless those around you with an encouraging word.
8. Stinginess – Let your desire for dollars lead you to confess the treasure you are trying to build on earth.  Instead find your freedom by giving away a significant amount over the next 40 days of Lent to a church, a nonprofit, or an individual in need.

Lent is a gift hidden in our calendar that shouldn’t be ignored.  Take the time this year to give something up that will lead you to true repentance.  If you do, Jesus will use your repentance to lead you to health.  He will get your life in shape to look more like his.  You won’t have to work so hard to prove you’re a “good” person any more.  Instead Christ will do the job himself of making you pure and holy from the inside out.