The beginning of Lent is upon us. Our Shrove Tuesday celebration was a lot of fun and the food was great. But today we begin a time of going without...a time to reset our focus on the One who gave His very life that we might obtain life which is life indeed.
I was thinking today about this time and for those who will be fasting and am reminded of a wise Missions guy who with his wife and family served for a period of time in Iran. One of the things I recall him saying was that it wasn't the size of the storm that really mattered. The truth is you can't do anything about the storm anyway. Rather the important thing is to be prepared for the storm. He quite humorously (and memorably) illustrated it by suggesting that a person walking along the road and hit with a 100 mile an hour wind gust would be knocked off their feet (at which time he proceeded to roll head over heels on the ground). Not pretty. However if the same person were walking along and found something sturdy to brace themselves by it would fare much better for them.
The same thing is true as we enter this season of fasting. 1 Peter 4:13-14 says "Dear Friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed." Though we certainly won't suffer like Christ did, yet through fasting we are entering into His suffering in order that we might rejoice at His coming. Therefore we ought to think ahead to all that may confront us in the days ahead and to begin to prepare our hearts and minds for all that may come our way. In that way we won't be knocked off course when something comes up, but rather we can brace for it and bring it to Jesus as the One who has been there, done that, and will carry us through.
Let us be in prayer today for our own right attitudes and preparations of the heart as we embark on this journey closer to Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment