As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, my God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?
— Psalm 42:1-2
What Is Lent?
Lent is the forty days leading up to Easter, not including Sundays (during which we celebrate Jesus’ resurrection!). For the Church, this season is a time of reflection, repentance, and renewal. Many followers of Jesus find it helpful to fast during Lent.
What About Fasting?
Fasting has been misunderstood in many ways. Fasting is not:
Proving our spiritual worth by how much we can “suffer”
Giving up sins or bad habits (we should be giving up those things anyways)
Trying out a new diet (going on a low-carb diet is not the same thing as fasting).
When we fast, we take a step back from a good gift of God (for example, food!) in order to seek the Giver of those gifts. When our stomachs growl from hunger, or we feel fidgety from a media fast, we are reminded that our greatest hunger should be Jesus Himself. Dr. Bill Bright of Cru (formerly Campus Crusade for Christ) offers several other wise insights into why we should fast.
As Richard Foster writes:
Fasting must forever center on God. More than any other Discipline, fasting reveals the things that control us.
Simply put, we fast so that we can make more room in our hearts for Jesus.
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Lenten Resources
As we withdraw for a time from some good gifts of God during this season, we also encourage you to draw near to the Giver intentionally through spiritual disciplines.
During this Lenten season, we encourage you to pray, fast, and give. Below you can find some Lenten resources (right-click to save PDF files):
Bible Reading
The YouVersion Bible App has several reading plans here, including Lent for Everyone by NT Wright.
Here is a simple Daily Readings for Lent 2018 from our denomination.
You can also subscribe to daily Lenten readings from Bible Gateway here (including Dietrich Bonhoeffer and Dallas Willard)
Families & Kids
This family devotional, Because of Jesus, includes six simple lessons (one for each week) with Bible reading, discussion questions, a “big take-away,” and a way to put faith into action.
Here is a Lenten coloring page (and another one here) — post these to your fridge after your kiddos color them in!
This set of “Learn About Love” worksheets includes some Bible discussion, word scramble, and other activities.
Photo-A-Day
Lent 2018 Photo-A-Day Journey — if you post to social, please tag it #AnchorCityLent
These simple acts of faith & devotion can help Christians of all ages make room in their hearts for Jesus.
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Seeking & Celebrating Jesus!
We encourage you to break your fast on Sundays. We celebrate the resurrection of Jesus each Lord’s Day, and breaking the fast weekly reminds us that it’s not primarily about our self-discipline, but celebrating the Risen King of grace and life.
Anchor & Hope Church 