“Prayer means to find the way to God and to speak with him, whether the heart is full or empty.”

~Dietrich Bonhoeffer

            Hardly out of the seasons of Advent and Christmas, we are already looking forward to Lent, which begins with Ash Wednesday on the 22^nd of this month. Traditionally, Lent is the six weeks prior to the time we remember the Passion and Resurrection of our Lord, the very heart of our faith. For centuries, Christians have used this as a time of prayer, repentance, self-denial, and other self-discipline in order to prepare the heart, mind, and body for the death and resurrection of Jesus.

            People aim to achieve this intentional preparation in a number of ways. Many people take up a dietary discipline, perhaps giving up sweets, or coffee, or alcohol. Some may choose to fast one day a week. Some may give up something else. A trend among my seminary friends was to give up Facebook for the duration of Lent! Another friend of mine in college gave up silverware – she either ate things she could eat with her hands, or she used chopsticks, which made for entertaining meal times for the rest of us, watching her struggle through. Another tactic is to take something on – a prayer practice, or journaling, or choosing a different place each week to give financially or to volunteer for an hour. Or maybe a combination: give up that daily run to Starbucks, and give the money you would have spent on a latte to the church instead.

            What’s the point of taking on a discipline? Very simply, it helps us to focus our lives of faith in this most sacred time of the church year. At only six weeks, Lent offers us a chance to try something that we might not be willing or able to do all the time, but for six weeks, we allow ourselves to feel its impact. Whatever you choose as your discipline, you should notice it. And when you notice it, you let your mind go to Christ. For six weeks, when you get a craving for coffee, you stop to say a short prayer: “God grant me patience.” “Thank you for my health this day.” “Be with those who hunger and thirst.” “Speak, for your servant is listening.”

            Whatever the discipline you choose, let it be surrounded in prayer. If you need some external structure for your prayer life this Lent, join us for midweek gatherings on Wednesdays.

As in Advent, we will have a soup supper, a Bible study, and a service of Evening Prayer. The Bible study will focus on a different Psalm each week. The Psalter (another name for Book of Psalms) has long been considered the prayerbook of the church, in which God provides us words with which to pray. King David prayed Psalms, as did Jesus, as have Christians for the past 2000 years. Come learn how to pray through the Psalms.

            Blessings to you as we begin the Lenten journey together this month. God be with you.

                                                                                                Peace,

                                                                                                Pastor Johanna

*** You can find this article and the rest of our newsletter, Covenant Connections, on the Bethlehem Lutheran Church website by clicking here.