Welcome to the Lenten season. In the past, Lent meant my giving up something. Each Ash Wednesday, I would pray and ask God to show me where I needed improving, to point out what caused me to stumble. Each year, without fail, the Lord pointed out something that needed to go. I would give it up and it would cleanse my heart and help me focus on the sacrifice He made for me.
This year's Ash Wednesday I prayed. I asked what I should purge. No answer. I prayed again. I asked what I needed to give up. What was leading me astray? No answer.
Now, I'm not the kind of girl who receives a non-answer answer and thinks, "All right! Home free!" Nope. That would not be me. I listen harder. I ask again. (Ask my mother. She'll tell you I don't take silence for an answer. Better yet, ask my husband.) So, I asked again. Still, nothing.
Well, sometimes God speaks through others. He spoke to me through a conversation with a girlfriend. We chatted Ash Wednesday night and she relayed the message of that evening's church service. The pastor had admonished us to pull closer to God. Get back in the Word. Make a commitment to study more. Sigh. And there it was.
This will be the first time in over a dozen years that I haven't given up something. Instead, I'm making a commitment to "add on" by reading the Word daily. I've gotten away from daily study - more on that later. I started in Acts. What better way to see what God can do than by seeing His acts?
I don't normally ask direct questions in posts, but I'm curious. What are you doing for Lent? Are you giving up anything? Are you focusing more on something? What are you doing to draw closer to the Lord? Leave a comment or email me. I'd love to know.
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