|
|
The Season of Lent
|
On Wednesday, March 5, we begin the season of Lent. Lent is that
special time of year in the Christian calendar set apart to reflect on our Lord
Jesus' life and teachings, especially His sacrifice for us on the cross. It
is often a time when we sacrifice some thing or some activity in our life so
that we can spend more time thinking about Him and serving Him.
In a world where "more is better," what do we do with Lent - this
time of sacrifice, of giving things up, so we draw closer to Christ? Sacrifice
seems strange to us, doesn't it? Especially when we're bombarded on all sides
with "Accumulate more stuff! After all, you're worth it!" Add to this
idea of sacrifice Jesus' words in Mark 10:43. Whoever desires to become great
among you shall be your servant. Now we're really swimming against the current
in our society!
But that's what we're called to do as Christians become servants of Christ.
Vernon Grounds helps us with this in a recent Our Daily Bread. He writes: Some
people feel like a small pebble lost in the immensity of the Grand Canyon. But
no matter how insignificant we judge ourselves to be, we can be greatly used
by God.
In a sermon early in 1968, Martin Luther Ling, Jr. quoted Jesus' words from
Mark 10 about servanthood. Then he said, "Everybody can be great, because
everybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't
have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve. You don't have to know
about Plato and Aristotle to serve... You only need a heart full of grace, a
soul generated by love."
When Jesus' disciples quarreled about who would get the places of honor in heaven,
He told them, "Whoever desires to become great among you shall be your
servant. And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all. For even
the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life
a ransom for many" (Mark 10:43-45).
I wonder about us. Is that our understanding of greatness? Are we gladly serving,
doing tasks that may be unnoticed? Is the purpose of our serving to please our
Lord, rather than to gain the applause of people? If we are willing to be a
servant, we can achieve true greatness. Please take time during this Lenten
season to think about and pray about what it means to be a Christian, a follower
of Jesus Christ, in our world today. Also, plan to join us for our Lenten Lunches,
beginning on Wednesday, March 5, from 12:00-1:45 PM in Fellowship Hall. We will
be looking at Jesus' Sermon on the Mount.
In His Service,
Karen K. Gallagher