Lent is a 40 day period of stillness, focus and repentance leading up to resurrection Sunday. Based on Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness, Lent is an important tool that can help you stay attuned to God’s voice as you refl ect on His sacrificial love.
When does Lent Start?
Because Lent follows the liturgical calendar, the exact date that Lent falls each year changes. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday, which is always held 46
days (40 fasting days and 6 Sundays) before Easter Sunday. (Easter occurs on the first Sunday after the Paschal full moon, which is the first full moon on or after the spring equinox, according to BBC). From the earliest days of the Church, Christians have desired to prepare for the celebration of Christ’s Resurrection at Easter through a period of fasting and prayer that mirrors the 40 days that Christ spent in the desert at the beginning of His ministry. But there was one little hitch, however. Because Sunday is the day of Christ’s Resurrection, from the time of the Apostles on fasting has been forbidden on Sunday.
While Lent does include personal sacrifice, the goal of this time isn’t to better your life, but to center your life on what matters most: the One who
made you and died for you.
The basic purpose of Lent is to create space in the middle of life’s
responsibilities to appreciate what’s always been there: and i.e. God’s presence.
However you chose to practice Lent, do spend the 40 days creating space in your soul to reflect Jesus’ sacrificial suffering and the power of his resurrection.
