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Mardi Gras, Lent, and Fasting: What You Need to Know

To fast or not to fast?

Your news feed today may reveal scenes of wild celebrations in New Orleans and other cities on the Gulf Coast. Maybe you wonder, as I once did, what these rowdy scenes have to do with a holiday in the Catholic church.

Mardi Gras originated in the early centuries AD, when pagan Romans celebrated a fertility god with debauchery and drunkenness. Early Christians decided to transform the raucous celebration and make it a day for feasting to mark the end of “ordinary time” after Christmas and the beginning of Lent, the season of fasting and repentance before the celebration of Christ’s resurrection. The French first coined the term “Mardi Gras” (Fat Tuesday) as they ate up all of the eggs and milk they would be fasting from during Lent.

Lent, short for Lenten, comes to us from the Old English word for “Spring”: lenten, which meant “lengthen.” As the daylight lengthens, life springs into view, buds blooming and bright stalks shoving their way through the earth.

Lent now refers to a season in the church calendar in which many Christians prepare for Easter by reflecting deeply on the love and sacrifice of Jesus our Savior. Some people choose to fast, giving up something they enjoy, or taking up a sacrificial act. Fasting is not believed to make people right with God; rather, it reminds us that we desperately need a righteous Savior and makes us grateful for God’s “plentiful redemption” (Psalm 130).

As Lent begins tomorrow, it’s a good time to consider the question: to fast or not to fast?

3 misguided reasons for fasting:

When our children were in elementary school and junior high, they attended a school which encouraged giving up something for Lent. I insisted (to a fault, I confess), that they not fast for the wrong reasons.

  1. Because “everyone” is doing it. Teenagers aren’t the only ones who do religious things because of peer pressure. If we choose to fast only because it’s the thing to do, we may be worshipping people rather than God.
  2. To show off our spirituality.This reason is closely connected to the first. Jesus warned his followers against fasting to show off.
  3. To test our willpower. While discipline for the purpose of glorifying God is good, we need to beware of fasting only to glorify our own strong willpower.  

Jesus’ warning to his followers aptly sums up these three misguided reasons for fasting:

When you practice some appetite-denying discipline to better concentrate on God, don’t make a production out of it. It might turn you into a small-time celebrity, but it won’t make you a saint.” Matthew 6:16.

Self-discipline can be dangerously self-focused. The purpose of fasting is not to puff ourselves up. Share on X

4 good reasons for fasting:

There are clear biblical models for fasting, most notably, Christ’s practice while facing temptation in the wilderness. Consider these four ways God may work in us through this spiritual grace.

  1. To identify our cravings: Fasting can reveal the food, drink, activities, etc. that we turn to for fulfillment of our longings and desires.
  2. To practice waiting on the Lord: When we’re craving something we love, we can remember that it is good to wait on the Lord’s goodness: “I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” This verse leads to the next powerful reason for fasting:
  3. To discover how plentiful redemption is: When we let go of things we depend on, we begin to see how paltry they are in contrast to the generosity of God’s love for us in Christ.
  4. To highlight Christ’s righteousness: If we try a fast for forty days, we will likely fail with regularity. (Even if you never break your fast, take note of how irritable you may become while keeping it!) We become even more grateful that our salvation is not based on our perfect keeping of any law but on Christ’s.

The problem with the food, drink and activities that we fill our lives with is that, like the well-water the Samaritan woman seeks, it will never satisfy. The fact is, unless we feed off Christ’s righteousness, we will starve. Though fasting has historically been way down on my list of spiritual practices, when I’ve tried it, God has filled me to overflowing with his grace.

Fasting from emotional fillers will draw us to feast on the grace which truly satisfies. Share on X

A Prayer about Fasting or Not Fasting

Lord, whether we choose to keep a fast in the next forty days or not, we confess that we often try to fill our stomachs, our hearts, and our minds with things that do not satisfy. We bow before you, acknowledging our desperate need for the living water you have promised to give in our Savior Jesus Christ. Let us mourn our sin during this season; let us rejoice in your salvation. In Jesus’ name we ask, Amen.

What about you? What experiences do you have with fasting? What other good or bad reasons for fasting would you suggest?

Photo by Thomas Kinto on Unsplash

5 Good Reasons to Celebrate Reformation Day

5 Good Reasons to Celebrate Reformation Day

The good news of Reformation Day

I had great history professors in high school. I only wish I had paid more attention in Modern European History. Then I might have understood the worldwide impact of the Protestant Reformation so much better than I do. Here’s what I do know—whether Martin Luther actually nailed his 95 Theses to a church door or not, he wrote them, and what he and other Reformers like Calvin and Zwingli wrote, changed history and Christianity forever.

The Catholic church and the Holy Roman Empire of the early 16thcentury, the formal representation of Christianity in that day, had become corrupt. Martin Luther and the other Reformers insisted on what are known as the five “sola’s” (don’t worry—you don’t need to know Latin to understand this blog post), and those five “alone’s” or “only’s” are very good news for Christians today, namely because they emphasize the major truths of the gospel.

Here are the five “alone’s” with an explanation of why they were such good news then and continue to be so today. I also included some Scripture that speaks to these “alone’s”:

Five Sola’s of Reformation

1. Scripture Alone (Sola Scriptura).  (2 Timothy 3:16).

Good news: You can read and trust the Bible alone as the final authority on spiritual matters.

Before the Reformation, the Bible was not often read in the Roman Catholic Church, and when it was, it was read in Latin, then interpreted by Church leaders who often added to or changed the meaning. Because many common people didn’t understand what the Bible said, the corrupters of religion were able to twist its meaning.

Then, between 1440 and 1450, Gutenberg invented the modern printing press, and the first Bible was printed in 1455. The Reformers thought it would be a good idea for everyone to be able to read the Bible, and they began to translate it into languages people knew. So not only did the Reformers insist that Scripture alone is the ultimate authority for spiritual life, they also gave us the great privilege we have now – the ability to read the Bible in a translation we can understand!

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.”2 Timothy 3:16:

2 and 3. Faith Alone and Grace Alone (Sola Fide and Sola Gratia)

Good news: You don’t have to be able to afford “indulgences” in order to be saved.

In the late 1400’s and early 1500’s, corrupt officials of the Roman Catholic Church sold indulgences. An indulgence was something anyone could purchase to obtain forgiveness of sins, for themselves, or especially for someone who had already died. As Joan Acocella explains, “the name was written in on a printed form: [name] was forgiven x amount of time in Purgatory. The more time off, the more it cost, but the indulgence-sellers promised that whatever you paid for you got.” (The New Yorker, How Martin Luther Changed the World, October 30, 2017)

As Martin Luther studied Paul’s epistles, he became convinced that the Bible teaches justification by faith alone and by grace alone—we are “justified,” that is, made right, only by God’s grace and through believing in Jesus Christ as Savior. We do not earn salvation by doing good works—or by purchasing indulgences.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God…” Ephesians 2:8

“We also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified” (v. 16).  Galatians 2:14–16

4. Christ Alone. (Solus Christus):

Good news: Only Jesus grants salvation, and you don’t need a priest to intercede on your behalf before God.

The corrupt practice of selling and buying indulgences had also corrupted the truth of how people were saved. As David Guzik explains here,

“The idea was something like this: “Men and women are not saved by Jesus, but through the pope and the institution of the Roman Catholic Church.”

The Bible is very clear that Jesus is “the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father but through him.” (John 14:6). Jesus is also “one God and mediatorbetween God and men.” (1 Timothy 2:5). Christ as mediator is great news for believers: Christ himself is mediating for us before the Father, beseeching him to forgive us because he died for our sins and made us righteous.

The church and priests and pastors and elder boards can guide, protect, and shepherd. They act as God’s servants in growing and discipling the body of Christ. But Christ alone saves us.

For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 1 Timothy 2:5

5. To God Alone Be the Glory (Soli Deo Gloria)

Good news: You don’t have to bow before anyone except the triune God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who alone receives all the glory.

This final “alone” makes perfect sense in light of the four preceding principles. In the corrupt Catholic Church and Holy Roman Empire, “all glory, laud, and honor” was often misplaced, given to the Pope or the Holy Roman Emperor, not God, who alone deserves it. The Reformers helped Christians understand their true purpose: to glorify God. One of the most famous statements of this purpose is found in the Westminster Catechism, which declares, “Man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.”

Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah. Psalm 24:10

A Prayer Celebrating the Reformation

Lord, thank you for the very good news that we are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Thank you that you have explained all of this in your Holy Bible. We are so grateful, and indeed, we seek to give you all the glory for all you have done for us! In Christ’s name, Amen.

For a wonderful graphic on the Sola’s of the Reformation, go here: https://www.thegoodbook.co.uk/downloads/5-solas-infographic.png

The Best Holiday Greeting of 2016 & Beyond

The Best Holiday Greeting of 2016 & Beyond

A Trendy Holiday Greeting

Last week, I wrote a little bit about the holiday greeting controversy and the real reason we should say “Merry Christmas.” Today I want to write a few thoughts about a holiday greeting I have been noticing. It’s cropping up on Christmas cards and coffee cups, wrapping paper and wooden signs. It must be “on trend.” It is…

“Peace on earth, good will to men!”

which is – ALMOST – straight out of the Bible.
How about PLANETARY PEACE for a holiday greeting? Read more. Share on X
It makes sense that people would like this greeting. It’s NICE and TIDY. I mean, after all, who doesn’t want peace in this war-mucked world? And isn’t it nice to wish good will to men (and women – that should be “mankind,” right?, though it loses the ring a bit:-). (IT’S COMPLICATED)!!!! BUT The reality is – “Peace on earth, good will to men” doesn’t go far enough, not nearly so far as that very first Christmas message. It lacks depth, it lacks flavor, it lacks the true richness of the angels’ message. It’s kind of like comparing a low-fat graham cracker to one of those rich butter cookies that come in a can.

The Best Holiday Greeting

Here’s what Luke 2:14 really says:

“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

Now that’s rich. Let’s look at the various holiday greetings contained within:

  1. Glory be to God! God is – LIKE WOW! Better than the best Christmas present ever – He IS the best Christmas present ever. So maybe, just maybe, when that weary and worn store clerk throws a “Happy Holidays” at you, look her in the eye, take note of the glory of God in her, and say it like you mean it:

    GLORY BE TO GOD!

  1. Peace on this planet. Granted, that would sound really strange to say out loud. But think about the meaning. Maybe you can figure out a cooler way to say it. Wait — how about “Planetary Peace!”  Sounds kinda Star Wars-ish, right? Okay, maybe not.

Part A: Peace: Proclaim the peace the shepherds announced: 

  • Christ has arrived to bring peace by healing your sin-sick souls.
  • Christ has come to restore the peace, the intimate relationship between you and your Creator.
  • Christ has come to establish lion-lying-down-with-lamb peace. No more enmity with God, no more wars, no more frenemies.

Part B: Planet. When we say earth, think planet. 

By his grace, We are empowered to live that peace on earth, right here, right now, on this little piece of dirt, this little plot of planet. Share on X where Christ has called us to be his ambassadors.

  1. Grace to you! YOU are in his favor. You didn’t have to earn it. This baby born at Christmas brings God’s favor to you. “In returning and rest you shall be saved” (Isaiah 30:15).

My Holiday Greeting to You

Whichever holiday greeting you choose, I pray that through this week and the coming ones, you may know

God has come to show favor to his people, to those who truly desire the peace that comes in proclaiming Christ as Savior. And may you bask in that glory, living a butter-cookie life of worship and praise to the One who calls you his child in Christ.

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The Real Reason We Should Say Merry Christmas

The Real Reason We Should Say Merry Christmas

Should we really say “Merry Christmas”?

It’s been years now since the heated controversies began about various retail outlets changing their official greeting from “Merry Christmas” to “Happy Holidays.”

Forget that controversy – there’s a better reason to ask if we should really say Merry Christmas. It has more to do with the sometimes hard realities of Christmas.

We are well into the Advent season now, and it’s probably a good time to tell the truth about the first Christmas:

The first Christmas arrived in a season of suffering and silence.

I don’t know about you, but sometimes I get this very mixed-up notion that Christmas should be a season of continual merriment and joy. Then it really bothers me when I am confronted by the ravages of a world wrecked by sin and sorrow:

  • Destruction: unsuspecting victims murdered en masse, wars and rumors of wars
  • Disease: balded children fighting leukemia; balded moms fighting breast cancer…
  • Division: hatred and hostility dividing people groups, marriages ripped by cruelty, sweet friendships soured by gossip
  • Darkness: severe depression eclipsing the light of any hope…

Here’s what I forget: people long-ago also suffered the shalom wrecked by the fall – destruction, disease, division, darkness – it was all there, and yet God had been silent for 400 years.

The first “Merry Christmas”: GOOD TIDINGS OF GREAT JOY!

It was into this sorrowful, silent season the angel Gabriel burst with the original Christmas card:

Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you! Luke 1:28

THE LORD IS WITH US!!! That’s the game-changer. That’s the REAL REASON we can say a whole-hearted “MERRY CHRISTMAS”!

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shone” (Isaiah 9:2).

Into a sorrowful, silent season, the angel arrived with the first good tidings of great joy! Share on XAccording to this gospel, those who have just a mustard seed of faith in Christ as Savior are living a new life, whether it appears that way or not. We still struggle with sin, but we do not mourn as those without hope.

We live with the memory and daily evidence of Christ-redeeming and restoring —

We wait for the Lord to come again and make it all right:

“They shall not hurt or destroy
in all my holy mountain;
for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.” Isaiah 11:9

“In the world you shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer, for I have overcome the world!” Jn. 16:33

And so we can rejoice on the days when Christmas doesn’t feel merry. This is not a strange path we walk.

And we will not walk this path forever.

And so, in the name of the one who has humbled himself to enter this world as a babe in the manger, in the name of the One who will come again as Redeeming King to heal finally and forever, I wish you a …

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

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How to Suck Christmas Joy out of Everything: An Advent Story

How to Suck Christmas Joy out of Everything: An Advent Story

Or why we really need Jesus to COME…

Friday night at our church Christmas party, I was reminded — by a kindred spirit — of how I used to suck the joy out of Christmas and Advent for my family…by holding on so very tightly to MY WAY of doing things…

…and how kind and patient God has been, daily, moment by moment, transforming me into the likeness of his Son, even when it has seemed that nothing is actually happening.

Here’s the story — maybe you can relate? (Please tell me you can relate!)

I LOVE Advent. I’m not honestly as crazy about the Christmas part with the gifts to buy and holiday parties to attend (classic introvert:-), but I really love me some Advent Jesse Tree.

Which is why I got a little peeved the other night at the dinner table when I asked one of the two guys (my husband and my son) to read the Advent devotional and they both responded with the enthusiasm of a snail. (I had lost my voice or I would have read it myself.)

After I encouraged them, “Don’t hate — appreciate,” my husband raised his enthusiasm to turtle level and began to read.
(Has anyone ever wanted you to feel excited when you just didn’t have the energy? Then you know how bad I was making him feel:-).

Oh, but now he left out all of the Advent activities (which of course I knew because I LOVE ADVENT!).
(Have you ever tried to do what someone asked and you still didn’t do it the way they wanted, so they still weren’t happy?)

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I was ruining everyone’s night with my demands that they enjoy the Advent devotional — MY WAY!

(Note that “everyone” was only two plus me now, which was part of the problem — I was missing my full nest (even though the other kids, had they been home, would have also easily have lost their joy by now.)

And then, into this weary, sin-worn scene, Jesus came.

My husband jokingly offered, “I can sing the song if you want.”
I smiled. But I suggested that maybe our son, who is a singer of the “choral” variety, might do it.

Being a good sport, he agreed.

“But wait!” I ran into the other room, grabbed a snowman Christmas candle, turned out all the lights in the kitchen, and lit the fat little ball of wax.
I was [kind of] joking — one of the suggested activities was to light your first candle in the advent wreath, which OF COURSE we don’t have.

He's shown up in a scene as messy as the manger; he’ll show up in the mess of your heart right now. Share on X

But what happened is that…
CALM arrived in the room and in our hearts.
Our son began to sing.
And stillness settled.
And we saw Jesus.

The hymn for that night was “O come, O come Emmanuel.” Read it or sing it. Then…
Dare to ask Jesus to come.
He has shown up in a scene as messy as the manger, and he’ll show up in the mess of your heart right now.

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan’s tyranny
From depths of Hell Thy people save
And give them victory o’er the grave
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death’s dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, O come, Thou Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai’s height,
In ancient times did’st give the Law,
In cloud, and majesty and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

Photo Credit: Copyright: <a href=’http://www.123rf.com/profile_teraberb’>teraberb / 123RF Stock Photo</a>

5 Ways to Have a Happy Thanksgiving

5 Ways to Have a Happy Thanksgiving

Is there really such a thing as a Happy Thanksgiving?

If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you probably know that title’s a bit tongue-in-cheek. I tend to be a bit of a holiday cynic who recognizes that these “happy” occasions aren’t necessarily happy for all people. I don’t believe in “just put on a happy face” and the “sun’ll come out tomorrow.”

AND YET. I do believe that the gospel does lead us to a place of “happy,” “Thanks” and “giving.”

Here are 5 things the gospel tells me about “Happy Thanksgiving.”

  1. “Happy” means to a Christian far more that we are blessed, and it only takes a cursory glance at Luke 6:20-26 or Matthew 5:3-12 to see that blessing in the Christian story comes often from circumstances considered “unhappy” in the American story.
  2. “Thanks” often translates the Greek word “charis” in the Bible, the same word that means “grace.”
    What grace has operated in your life to bring you to today? Where have you known God’s favor? These are places to start with “thanks,” and they usually lead to many more.
  3. “Giving,” another core concept of the Christian narrative. In our story, it is impossible to receive grace without responding. Yes, we are called to “give thanks” to God for his mighty favor in our lives, but we are also called to give “thanks” to others by…
  4. “living” faith, hope, and love into others’ lives — “because he first loved us.” Whom will you love today, this week? How?
    When we love others, especially those who are different from us, we are living Thanksgiving in a way that will bring “happiness,” not just blessing but a true sense of joy, delight, rest, and contentment — shalom!
  5. Turkey. Despite the fact that I have a heart to live a happy thanksgiving in my life, I’ll probably end up being a turkey at some point in the next week. That is, I may throw  a very unhappy pity party for myself somewhere along the way. May I never forget, when I do turn inward in sin, that the good news, the happy news, for which I am thankful every day is that I am a sinner saved by grace!

So there you go. Happy Thanksgiving. Now it’s your turn. Share YOUR ideas on having a “Happy Thanksgiving.” Don’t forget to include practical things like “don’t forget to thaw out the turkey!” :-)! Also, make sure to sign up for the free Thanksgiving story topics if you want more inspiration!

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