The Drastic Action of Lent
OPENING PRAYER:
Father, as I enter this season of fasting and reflection, help me see it not as religious duty but as sacred opportunity. Teach me what it means to make space for You by removing what's taken Your place.
"When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show others they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you."
Jesus speaks these words during the Sermon on the Mount, addressing the spiritual practices of His followers. He assumes they will fast—notice He says "when," not "if"—but He's concerned with the heart behind the practice. Fasting isn't about performance or earning God's favor; it's about creating space for God to do His work in us. Matthew 6:16-18 (NIV)
REFLECT:
The message ended by reminding us that Lent had just begun—the 40 days leading up to Easter when Christians traditionally fast from something. But then came this crucial challenge: "I don't want you to just fast from something these 40 days just because you're like, oh, that'd be healthier, that'd be better for me. But ultimately, what's best is what can I get out of the way so that Jesus can be center again, that he can be my source of hope, my source of security, and the source of joy in my life?"
This is the heart of what Jesus was asking the rich young ruler to do. "Sell everything you have" wasn't about poverty for poverty's sake. It was about removing the obstacle between him and God. It was about taking drastic action to get the idol off the throne. The message emphasized this phrase: "drastic action." Not casual effort. Not good intentions. Not "I'll try to do better." Drastic. Radical. Costly. The kind of action that actually changes something.
The message pointed out Warren Buffett's response to why he's given away over $60 billion: "There are many ways to heaven, but this is a pretty good way to do it." That's not generosity—that's idolatry dressed up as philanthropy. It's still about control, still about earning, still about him. True drastic action isn't about what makes us look good; it's about what removes the barrier between us and God.
Lent gives us a framework for this. For 40 days, we intentionally remove something—not to punish ourselves, but to create space. To notice what we've been filling that space with. To feel the discomfort of not having our usual comfort. To recognize how much we've been depending on something other than God. Maybe it's your phone and the validation you seek there. Maybe it's your work schedule and the security you find in productivity. Maybe it's your money and the control it promises. Whatever it is, the question remains: what needs to come off the throne?
The beauty of what Jesus offers is this: "For man, this is impossible. But for God, everything is possible." We can't break our own idols in our own strength. But God can. When we take drastic action—when we remove the idol, when we create the space, when we humble ourselves—God does what only He can do. He fills that space with Himself. He becomes our hope, our security, our joy. He gives us the life the rich young ruler was looking for but couldn't find because his hands were too full of other things.
I WILL STATEMENT:
I will take drastic action to remove my idols. What is the thing that, if you removed it for 40 days, would force you to depend on God in a new way? Commit to it. Write it down. Tell someone who will hold you accountable. And every time you feel the absence of that thing, turn to God and let Him fill that space.
CLOSING PRAYER:
Father, I'm ready to take drastic action. Show me what needs to go, and give me the courage to remove it. Fill the empty spaces with Your presence. Teach me to find in You what I've been seeking everywhere else. Thank You for loving me enough to ask me to let go of what's destroying me. Help me trust that You are better than anything I'm holding onto.