Lent 2015: Challenge

Dear Washington Mennonite, 

Last Sunday, I talked about Lent with the Youth in Sunday school. They've grown up with friends who give up things like chocolate for a season, and they've "enjoyed" fish on Fridays in the school cafeteria, but other than that, they know very little about this season of the church year--when we try to deliberately follow the way of Jesus-- who took on suffering and laid down his life. I've been thinking a lot about Lent since my conversation with the Youth. Traditionally, Mennonites have often not marked Lent with any special observation, but I wonder if we've missed some opportunities to embrace this relatively short season of the Christian year--opportunities to "beef up" our individual or collective spirituality--our relationship with God. 

In the wider Christian church, Lent is a somber time, marking the journey of Jesus as his ministry moved him toward crucifixion in Jerusalem. The Lenten season culminates in Easter, the celebration of Jesus' resurrection. As Mennonites, who read the gospels with a special eye toward the work of Jesus during his life, I wonder if our Lenten season could be a time of naming, celebrating, and following, with greater deliberation, the work and ministry of Jesus. The work and ministry of healing and love that so angered the powers-that-be, that were so threatening to the status quo, that they ultimately led to Jesus' death. Could our Lenten season be a time in which we reflect, not only on Jesus' impending death, but also on his ministry of abundant life--could we use this Lenten season to become more committed to discipleship--to following the way of Jesus?

I ended our Sunday school time with an impromptu challenge to each student--

Think of one thing to take up or lay down during Lent. 

Each of them are choosing one thing that will help them to focus on God, one thing that will help them to remember to follow the way of Jesus, one thing that will move them toward greater discipleship. 

We're going to talk about the things we're laying down and taking up next Sunday during the Sunday school hour.  We'll be discussing and holding one another accountable throughout the whole season of Lent. This is new for each of the youth. This is an experiment. We don't know what will happen--whether we'll be able to give up what we say we will or whether we'll be able to take up a new practice intentionally and see it through.We don't know what this season bring--or how this will impact our Sunday school class, But I, on behalf of Jim, Matti, Katie, Emmy, and Trevor (and Andrea): Invite you to JOIN US! Join the youth of Washington Mennonite as we try to use this Lenten season to grow in discipleship! 

I invite each of you to:

1) find some way to mark this Lenten season and use it to move toward greater discipleship

(take something up, lay something down, find a new spiritual practice, etc.)

2) let someone know what you're doing

3) hold one another accountable

and

4) let the Jr. High students know how it's going!

As a congregation, we are already involved in so many good things, imagine the things we could do if we each took this Lenten season seriously and used it to jump start our relationship with God and our discipleship living! 

So walk with us (the Youth Sunday school class) as we take this opportunity to spend 40 days living more deliberately. 

(We're DEFINITELY going to need encouragement!)

I'll be posting some Lenten resources soon to help you with this challenge. 

-amanda