In a recent sermon when I spoke about Jesus’ calling us to repent and believe the good news, I said, “the word Jesus used… means, literally, to change your mind. Think differently.” As we come to Lent, I’d like to focus again on this “thinking” aspect of repentance. Those who studied French or Spanish will remember that those languages use words like “penser” and “pensar” for “to think.” So to re-pent literally means, to re-think. The things we think lie behind what we do or say.
To pay attention to our thoughts, then, would be good advice. For example, what happens if we are always thinking, “Nobody loves me.” Or, “I deserve a little fun.” Or, “everyone does it.” Or, “no one else cares, why should I?” Etc?
What happens if we act on such thoughts? It’s hard to predict exactly since everyone is unique. One thing is certain, however: if we did a little re-thinking first, the outcome would be different. Maybe someone does love me. (There’s always Jesus!) Or, is the fun I really think would be fun now, be something I’ll feel good about in the morning? And is it really true that every last person does this? Or, is it really the case that no one else cares? Careful thinking on these questions could be fruitful for sure.
Re-thinking such thoughts is, I believe, very much in line with what Jesus invites us to do, when he calls on us to repent and believe in the good news. Lent is a great time to practice the skill. One of the traditional Lenten disciplines that can help is charitable giving. Finding out more about the needs of others, and what good-hearted people are doing to help, changes how we think. We think less about ourselves, for starters. The range of things we could be doing to be helpful broadens out. Giving helps us re-think our motivations.
For this reason I’m very pleased that we will have a such a great series of speakers who will tell us each week about good works their organizations are doing. A list of them appears elsewhere in the Shamrock. We are all invited to get behind their good works by a special collection each Sunday.
I’m also looking forward to a weekly time of group Lectio Divina each Sunday after services. This ancient practice of holy reading immerses us spiritually in Christ, both by hearing the Word and by listening to one another’s encounters with the Word. This series will surely help us all re- think how we think about God in our lives.
Finally, something I have re-thought personally has to do with St Patrick’s day (March 17). This always falls in Lent. I have been reluctant to give up one of the Sundays in Lent to celebrate it in our worship service. But I have slowly come round to seeing how helpful it could be to our communal life to do that. So this year instead of reading the lessons for the Fifth Sunday in Lent, we’ll be reading the ones for Patrick, and singing some lovely Irish hymns, and changing the liturgical colors too. There will be food and fellowship afterwards, and Karla Smolen has agreed to show pictures from her recent trip to Ireland.
Here’s what I think: even in Lent we deserve a little fun. What do you think? Blessings for your Lenten journey, yours faithfully, Donnel+