Unfamiliar Places | Monday Invocation
“Lent is a time that compels us to think deeply about our journey with God and what it means to follow Jesus even through the harsh times.”
Anthony Vernon
To me, Lent is the most important season in the life of the Church, as it is a 40-day journey toward the highs and lows of Holy Week culminating in the celebration of Easter. For some of us, it is a time that calls us to lay some things down in order to focus on our relationship with God; for others, that call may involve taking up something such as adding a spiritual discipline, such as prayer. Whatever it looks like for us, Lent is a time that compels us to think deeply about our journey with God and what it means to follow Jesus even through the harsh times.
In Genesis 12:1-4a, we see that God calls Abram (a patriarch in the Jewish faith) on a journey to a land that he has never been to. God says, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.” (NRSVue) Imagine being told to leave your family and all that is comfortable, to go somewhere strange and far away. I am sure that Abram questioned God’s call, though Scripture does not specifically say that he did. It says simply that he went, taking Lot with him.
Lent is a journey similar to Abram's (later renamed Abraham). It calls us to go to places unfamiliar to us in terms of faith and trust. During this time of Lent, may we rely on God to give us the strength to continue in what we have been called to do, whether it be laying something down through fasting or taking something up, such as compline (night prayer). In these times, God is with us, just as God was with Abram and his family on the way to Canaan.
Allow yourself during this Lenten season to go into those unfamiliar places of trust, knowing that God will meet you in those places and not only meet you there, but remain with you through the journey.
Join a Lenten Community Group!
Are you looking to join a weekly group discussing the scripture passages surrounding Lent this year? Join one of our Lenten Reflections Community Groups! We have 3 groups to choose from, which includes a group for Deconstructing Lent. You can see more information and sign up at the link below!
