Picture by Tom Sine
By Tom Sine
“Hitting the reset button” is one way to think about preparing for the Season of Lent suggested Cherry Haisten at our Ash Wednesday Service at Saint Andrews here in Seattle. She added that for many of us it can be a more serious time to make a new beginning than we achieve with our new year’s resolutions on January 1.
Lent provides an opportunity to look at ourselves honestly. It provides a chance to release attachments that pull us away from God, those we love and our best selves. It is also an opportunity to live our lives with more intentionality creating new ways to use our time and money for what matters most.
In my new book, Live Like You Give A Damn! Join the Changemaking Celebration, which will be published in April, I observe that many of us could be missing out on living our best lives. Too often it feels like our churches seem to become chaplains to the dominant culture…simply helping us limp through the week instead of empowering us to live our best lives.
As we hit the reset button for Lent 2016 we have the opportunity to make changes in our time styles to be more present to God and those we love. We also have the opportunity to carve out space in our lives to join those in the change making celebration who are creating new ways to empower our most vulnerable neighbors. I guarantee you will enjoy this Lenten activity much more that giving up Lattes or chocolate!
Last year in his address Guide to Lent: What You Should Give Up This Year.” http://time.com/3714056/pope-francis-lent-2015-fasting/ Pope Francis stated that more important than fasting from candy or alcohol is fasting from “our indifference towards others”.
I urge you to join those, like Pope Francis, that are enjoying Lent more than ever before because they are creating innovative new ways to live like they give a damn!