This is Pastor Tim’s article which appeared in the Evening Leader on Tuesday, Feb 20
As most of you are probably aware, last Wednesday was Ash Wednesday and we are now in the season known as Lent. Lent begins 46 days before Easter and it is the season of preparation as we look forward to the remembrance and celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
I would agree that Christmas is pretty amazing because in that season we are celebrating the birth of Jesus. However, all of us have managed to be born. Jesus’ birth was miraculous, but we all have a concept of being born because we all have done it and we know of plenty of mothers who have had children. It is a concept we understand.
What is it like to be resurrected from the dead? I have no idea. So far, only One has pulled that off and we have an annual celebration of that event sometime in the spring of every year. That is an amazing accomplishment that only God would be able to pull off. It is almost impossible to get our mortal minds around the concept of resurrection because everything we know in this world has a beginning and an end. To talk about eternal life is so far beyond our current experience that we need a period of time to recognize the gift that it is.
That is why we have the season of Lent. Lent is usually observed through prayer and fasting. During this season, we deprive ourselves of certain things because that brings our appetite to our full attention. Our natural inclination to indulge and over consume is what we recognize during Lent. That is one clear symptom of our sinful nature, and it is the reason that death exists in our world (see Genesis 3). It is in recognizing our broken, fallen and sinful nature that we look to God as our only hope.
This is the season that sets the Church apart from all other organizations on earth. This is why the Church is not a club or a social event, we are not a charitable organization and we are not in the business of entertainment. There are plenty of organizations out there who do those things better than we do. We are in the business of helping people recognize their brokenness and realize the power of a Living Savior. Yes, we do some of those other things. However, all of those are in pursuit of helping people understand that there is a God out there who cares about them so much that His Son died on our behalf so that we may know fulfillment that is not available anywhere else on earth.
That is why I do what I do in serving as the Pastor at Wayne Street Church. I want to help people know that there is more out there than the distraction and noise of this world. What you see is not all you get, when it comes to living because we have the chance to live everyday looking ahead knowing the best is yet to come. This is true both on the worst day you have ever had and it is also true on the best. The world has nothing to offer that even compares to this truth.
We have a number of wonderful church families here in St Marys and I truly hope that you belong to one of them. By participating in the life of your church family, not only do you have a network of people to rely on but you also have access to support and encouragement of the Body of Christ. There is a reason why Lent is a community event, it is because not only are we recognizing our own sinfulness but we also recognize that no one is above it. I am no better than any of you when it comes to sinfulness. All I have to offer you is what I have been given and that is the Good News we know as Jesus Christ.
However, the only way to appreciate just how incredible that offer is, you have to have a clear understanding of our current situation. That is the purpose of Lent. Just like the best way to understand how awesome it is not to have a toothache is to actually have a toothache, the only way to understand what the Grace of our Lord means is to recognize the sinfulness in our own lives.
The only chance we have to experience the majesty of Easter is to recognize how far we have fallen. Lent is not the happiest season on the church calendar, but I have to tell you, Lent ends in the most awesome way possible!