by Pastor Josh

 

This might sound odd, but my devo starts back at the beginning of Advent. Yes, the season of Advent is what leads up to the celebration of Christmas. And yes, I know we are starting the season that leads up to the celebration of Easter.

 

This past Christmas season I spent some time on social media focusing on how the advent candles, among other Christmas traditions, could help point us to Jesus. In my first video, I mistakenly said we were in the season of Lent. It was a slip of the tongue that gave many a laugh. However, one of my friends pointed out to me that at Christmas we celebrate the birth of Jesus and that is only important because of what He did at Easter. So, Advent really is the beginning of the season of Lent!

 

Now that we are in the 40 days (and six Sundays) leading up to Easter known as Lent, I want to talk about what that really means. For many, Lent is a time to give up something in our life to spend more time focused on our relationship with Jesus. Maybe that is a food fast, maybe a break from technology, or even a chance to break a habit of something you know shouldn’t be a part of your life in the first place. This idea comes from the 40 days Jesus spent in the desert focusing on His relationship with God.

 

We may think, “I have been through Advent, Lent, even Easter plenty of times. I worked on my relationship with God ____ years ago. I don’t need to give extra time now.” The truth is, we are all in desperate need of connection to Jesus. None of us are perfect and can ALWAYS benefit from strengthening the most important relationship we have.

 

No matter how you celebrate or focus your life during this Lenten season, my prayer is that these next 46 days through this devotional and the time we choose to give to Jesus will change us in a way that brings us and others closer to the Savior we will celebrate on Easter Sunday.

 

May the Advent/Lent season begin!