The Christian Tradition of Lent

Are you familiar with the traditions of Lent? Many evangelicals pass over the season, hardly noticing it at all. “Isn’t that just a Catholic holiday?” is what I’m often asked when I mention Ash Wednesday or Lent. Well, yes, but in the way Christmas and Easter are Catholic holidays. Though it doesn’t get much attention in our evangelical circles, Lent is a Christian tradition.

So today, allow me to introduce (or reintroduce) you to this season of Christian practice.

When I think of Lent, I imagine my garden when the snow has melted but everything is still dead. Last year’s loss still covers the ground; there’s no sign of green coming up yet. And so I bend down and gather all the decaying stalks and leaves into my arms and carry them, one load at a time, to the compost pile. It’s a big job, but in the end, the ground is clear and ready. New life will come—and to be clear, only God can bring new life. Still, I was given a necessary task, an invitation to clear out the former things to make room for what is to come.

The word Lent comes from an old word for spring, literally meaning lengthen, because the earliest whispers of spring are when the days begin to grow longer. New life will burst forth on Resurrection Sunday, but we aren’t there yet. We are waiting and preparing; the days are lengthening.

And so, those who observe Lent enter into a season of reflection, fasting, and prayer, always with Resurrection Sunday in our sights. We’ll spend the next 40 days reflecting on the fact that we came from dust, and to dust we will return. Honestly considering our weakness, our brokenness, our need—while never losing sight of the healing, provision and hope that we have in Christ—this is good news. As a Christian community we are clearing the ground, walking toward life.

In a society where we have done our best to rid ourselves of all struggle, discipline, and delayed gratification—while retaining as much pleasure and comfort as possible—this Lenten season stands in sharp contrast. Resurrection Sunday will be all the more celebratory because we have prepared our hearts for it. And what a tremendous, remarkable joy it is on that Sunday morning when new life bursts into our midst, when we rejoice fully.

As it says in 1 Peter 5:6: Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. (NIV)

One late winter afternoon, as I cleared away the dead leaves of last year’s flower garden, I discovered the most magnificent thing hiding underneath: a sprig of green, the first promise of new life to come.

Whether you or your church observes Lent, may God break into your dead and hopeless places with good news: the promise of new life.

Leave a comment below to let us know how you observe this season and what it means to you.