What Is Lent?

is meant to commemorate the forty days Jesus spent fasting in the wilderness, so some Lenten traditions do include self-sacrifice and special acts of charity during this time. Most involve confession and repentance. But for all religious traditions, Lent is a time to prepare for Easter, a time to actively prepare ourselves through Scripture, prayer, and repentance. We know there is nothing we can do to earn God’s favor and His love, but I think the very idea that we can do nothing, that it was all the work of God, sometimes causes us to take it all for granted.

Because we were, through God’s grace, crucified and buried with Christ – with no pain and suffering on our part – it seems easy. And it is:

Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved.

Acts 16:31

But if we don’t remember what that gift cost, we can also forget its value. We perhaps forget what sinners we were, how desperate our need was, and how great a sacrifice Jesus made for us, not just in His death, but in His very life here on earth.

But the other part of the story, the reason why Lent has an end, is because we were not only crucified and buried with Jesus, forgiven and made righteous, but we were also resurrected with Him into eternal life.

I Can

Attending this new church forced me to think about Lent. Whatever it was in my mind before or maybe what it is for others, it did not have to be for me. The crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ are the most important events in the history of the world. Believers, hopefully, are always mindful of this, but it is not wrong to spend a little extra time focusing on Jesus, the cross, His love and sacrifice for us that allows us to experience the amazing unearned and unending joy of Easter morning.

By the time you read this, Lent this year will have already begun, but the number of days doesn’t matter. Use whatever time you can to reflect on what a selfless gift Jesus gave us. The reflection, meditation, and prayer of the days of Lent can lead us to appreciate and value even more Christ’s sacrificial death for us.

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The post Fish on Fridays: How Can Christians Worship Through Lent? appeared first on 93.7 The Light.

1) Waking Up To a Basket

If you grew up with the tradition of waking up Easter morning to a basket of candy, toys, eggs, etc. you know the anticipation and excitement it brings…like Christmas morning with better weather! There’s no need to forgo the basket…just fill it with more meaningful items! Some ideas include: 

• A Bible or devotional book
• Cross shaped chocolate
• Colored eggs with Bible verses on them
• Book marks
• Dolls or action figures of favorite Bible stories
• A prayer box with paper and fun colorful pens
• Stickers

2) Eggs, eggs, eggs!

Coloring eggs is a fun pastime (doesn’t the scent of vinegar and boiled eggs take you right back?) and one that can easily be made more meaningful. The easiest way is to color the eggs as usual, but take the time to talk about what Easter really means, and share stories of what knowing Jesus has meant to you. If you’d like to make your egg decorations more Bible centered, see the links below for ideas.

• A 12-part explanation of the Easter story using plastic eggs
• Rae Dunn inspired eggs, perfect for decor or adult Easter baskets
• Easy Easter eggs with a cross design

3) Don’t Forget the Candy!

As mentioned in the basket section above, chocolate candy can be found in a cross shape, but there are other options, too. Oriental Trading has cross shaped candy bracelets, hard candy with sayings on the wrapper like, “Amazing Grace” and “He Lives!” Amazon has listings for Smartie-type candy with Scriptures on the wrapper, a tub of fruit snack packages with the “fruit of the spirit” verse from Galatians 5 on them, and more!

Another great idea is called the Jelly Bean Prayer. You make jars or bags of jelly beans, layered by color (or all mixed up, if you want) and print off the Jelly Bean Prayer and attach. You can give them to your neighbors, coworkers, friends, anyone you’d like to share the Good News with. Use the link below to get the poem in a free printable from happyhomefairy.com.

Black is for our sin, the wrong things we have done.

Red is for Jesus’ blood- He shed for everyone.

White is for a clean heart- when in Jesus we believe.

Gold is for the streets in Heaven, promised when Jesus we receive.

Green is for growing- hide His word in your heart.

Put your trust in Jesus- give your life a brand-new start!

(There are several versions of the Jelly Bean prayer online, if you’re looking for something a little different.)

4) A Celebration Meal.

You can make dinner a game! Find a symbolic meaning in each recipe you make and have your dinner guests guess what they are. If you have children in your life, let them help you with preparing the food and talk over what each food item means. They’ll love knowing what the answers are while the adults are trying to figure it out! A few recipes to try: 

• Passover Inspired Easter Dinner by fhelessons Blog
• Resurrection Dessert Rolls by Live Like You Are Rich Blog  (really cool object lesson for kids)
• Hot Cross Buns by Sally’s Baking Addiction

5) Activities!

Just like we see at Christmas time, it’s so easy to get caught up in the commercial aspects of the season. Plan ahead to take time as a family or small group to focus your minds and hearts on the resurrection of Jesus. 

• Plant a resurrection garden. If you’re not in a climate that’s ready for outdoor plants, plant an arrangement in a flower pot and add a tomb and a stone ready to be rolled away on Easter morning. Here’s a tutorial for a really cool Resurrection Garden where you grow wheatgrass to look like a grassy hill over Jesus’ tomb. (and if you’re thinking you don’t have enough time for that, the project comes together very quickly, and the grass sprouts overnight and looks great in just a few days!)
• Borrow an idea from Thanksgiving. Use a paper tablecloth and provide markers for people to write thank you notes to Jesus, their favorite Bible verses, what Jesus has done for them, etc. 
• Make an Easter creche. Similar to a Christmas nativity set, an Easter creche symbolizes the first Easter. You could fashion one out of clay, paper, or wood pieces. Use it for years to come to remind yourselves of the reason for Easter and the reason we have to celebrate!

We hope these ideas help you and your family to celebrate Easter in more meaningful ways this year! Let us know if you try any of these ideas, or if you have other traditions you’d like to share with us! 

FYI – a public affairs program with interesting people and hope-building projects around Ohio!
Have a question, comment, or topic? Contact FYI

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