This is one way to think of the season of Lent, our yearly pilgrimage with Jesus through the wilderness of temptation and challenge, into the world of hurting, seeking humanity and to the cross of self-sacrifice. It is surely the most challenging season in the Christian year but also the most rewarding for those who make the effort.
Sacrifice is the word often associated with Lent, a tough word indeed, and those Lenten sacrifices usually mentioned are prayer, penitence and fasting. Let me say from experience that none of these practices is particularly difficult: As Christians we pray every day; we confess our sins on a more or less regular basis; we may even give up the occasional meal as a prayerful reminder of those who are in need.
Sacrifice is the word often associated with Lent, a tough word indeed, and those Lenten sacrifices usually mentioned are prayer, penitence and fasting. Let me say from experience that none of these practices is particularly difficult: As Christians we pray every day; we confess our sins on a more or less regular basis; we may even give up the occasional meal as a prayerful reminder of those who are in need.