As we begin
this Lent season, we are bombarded by the familiar onslaught of the numerous
things that people are planning to give up for Lent. I have seen a variety of
funny, scary, and downright confusing
things which people are planning to halt for Lent. Some people choose to give
up soda for Lent. Some people choose
to give up fast food for Lent. Some people even vow to stay away from the most
difficult temptations of them all, the temptation that surely would have made
even Jesus stray: chocolate. Lent is coming across more
and more as a group dieting time than church season.
But food is
not the only thing people give up. Some people choose to ride their bikes to
work. Some people decide to walk when they are able to. Even the Pope seems to
be getting into the giving up spirit with his resignation this week!
But not
everyone gives something up, some people chose to add things. They add a
workout routine. They add a weekly phone call to a loved one. They may even add
a daily prayer.
Why do we do
all of this adding and taking away during Lent? Although Scripture does not specifically mention
Lent, we draw our understanding about how Lent works from a few different
passages. The reason that Lent lasts for 40 days (not including Sundays) is
because we are remembering a number of events from the Bible which reference
the number 40. There were 40 days
and nights of rain that caused the
flood of Noah's day. The Israelites
wandered in the wilderness for 40
years before they found the Promised Land.
And there were the 40 days which Jesus spent in the wilderness being tempted after his baptism. The common thread among
all three of these events is that they were challenging times for
God’s people, and at the end of that time, we are reminded that God is the one in control of all
things. These time frames of 40s
reminded God's people that they owe their faith and allegiance to God.
These times
of struggle tell us about when, in our religious past, when we have been
reminded of who it is that rules our lives. These times helped people focus on
God and encouraged them to set aside the things of this world.
This brings
us to our passage and to Jesus' description of devotion during the Sermon on the Mount.
It is from this passage that we discover the roots of some of our other Lenten
practices. Jesus talks about alms-giving, about praying, and about fasting.
Jesus discusses these three practices, but he doesn't just point them out as
good things to do, he indicates where the true power of these practices
resides.
Jesus is
encouraging us to perform these practices, but he is telling us to do so in
secret. His point is not that we shouldn't do Christ's work in public,
but rather that praying and fasting and giving offerings in secret helps us
focus on the meaning of the action
rather than the performance of it.
We often get caught up in how important it is to do these things that we can
forget that the importance of them
is the meaning and result.
This is why
Jesus says about the hypocrites "they have received their reward". In
other words, they have achieved what they set out to do - they have been seen
doing good things and they are looked up to for it. But these aren’t the
results for which Christ calls us to work.
When we
pray, the result is that God hears
our prayers, not that we look pious. When we give offerings, the result is that
God's work can be extending to those in need,
not that we look generous. When we fast, the result is that we gain a greater
appreciation for God's presence in
our lives, not that we seem holy (or lose weight).
So should we
be adding things, or should we be subtracting things? Is Lent a season about restriction, or is it a season of commitment? The answer is that it can
be both, because it is really about neither.
Lent is a season for reorientation.
The three
practices that Jesus emphasized are helpful to aid us in our reorientation.
Fasting is intended to help us focus on ourselves
- on our behavior and on our commitments, the things that we feel are
important. Almsgiving is intended to help us focus on others - on the needs of those around us which we may be able to
relieve. And praying is intended to focus our thoughts on God and remind us of God's presence in our lives. We can use these
practices - in whatever format we find them. For example, if giving up some
kind of food helps you reorient your focus on your personal devotion or on God
and those around you, it is an effective practice. But how do we know what kind
of reorientation we need?
In our
passage, Jesus says, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be
also." I've heard this phrase many times, but I've always thought that it
is kind of an ambiguous, abstract thought. There will my heart be? I think the
reason this saying comes across as strange is because we think of the heart as the center of our emotions and our
affections. The heart is where we think our love lies. This may ring
some bells with Valentine's Day coming up tomorrow. The day of love. We cut out
little red hearts and give them to our sweeties to show that they are our true
love and that we have strong feelings for them.
But love is
one of those emotions that we can't quite put our fingers on. It's something
that we can't really define, which
makes this passage inaccessible. But in Jesus' time the heart was looked at
differently. The heart was thought of as the center of a person's thought,
conscience, and will - more like what we would think of as the brain. The heart was thought of as the
center of a person's entire orientation,
what they focused on, who they appeared to be, their personality. These things
are a little less abstract.
Jesus is
saying that we value most, the things that we spend our time on, indicate what
we find as important at our very core. The things that we feel are important
indicate who we are.
This reminds
me of that common adage that if you want to see what is important to someone,
look at where their money goes. But in this case, money stands in for our
passions and our pursuits. These are the treasures that Jesus is talking about.
The things that we invest our time and our energy into are the treasures to
which Jesus refers.
What is it
that you invest your time and your energy in? What activities in your day are
the most important to you, the ones that you spend the most time or the most
focus on? What are the things that you might just call your hobby or your
diversion and what are the things that you would say are the things you truly
care about? Are the things that you really care about objects, possessions,
assets or are they people, relationships, loved ones?
Lent is the
opportunity we have as a church to ask ourselves these questions. This is the
opportunity we have during the year to be honest
with ourselves. When we add things or take things away, we are not trying to
come across as pious or devoted. We aren't trying to look like we have our act
together. We are admitting that we don’t
have our act together. We are trying to reevaluate what it is that we are
focusing on.
We can use
these Lent practices to discover if our treasures are being well invested. We
can use this season to try to discover whether these things are suitable
locations for our most valuable treasure - the short time we have on this
earth.
When we impose ashes on our foreheads on Ash Wednesday we say these words: Remember that you are dust,
and to dust you will return. I
invite us to consider the meaning of these words. Our time and
our focus and our devotion are precious treasures because they are limited. We have such a short time on
this earth to enjoy God’s creation and to try to do God’s work. Consider
whether your limited treasure - your time, your focus, your devotion - is being
invested in places that truly demonstrate, to you and to God, who you are. Let
us all take this season to truly ask ourselves if our thoughts, our
consciences, and our wills are directed towards God. Maybe our reorientation can guide us to lives
which are more focused on God’s kingdom.
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