Chuck Degroat
Published: 2017-02
Total Pages: 114
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Jesus said, "Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." Lent is from the Old English Lencten, meaning Springtime, that season in which we experience rebirth, growth, and goodness. Yet, we often view Lent as a morbid season, a season when we give up our favorite things. Instead, Lent is an invitation back to ourselves, back to the ground of our being as image-bearers, created "very good" even in our creaturely limitations. We are "enough" precisely because we're God-breathed and God-imaged. And even when we sabotage our original goodness, hiding behind our fig-leaved and false-selved control strategies, God pursues us in Jesus, becoming human not to overcome humanness but to redeem and ennoble it. These reflections - whether they are used for Lent or for another season of your life - are designed to invite you into the goodness of your life in Christ. Each week offers a unique theme that serves as a challenge for growth during Lent: RETURN TO YOUR GROUND WEEK 1 - DWELL WITH GOD WEEK 2 - LIVE FROM YOUR TRUE SELF WEEK 3 - IMAGINE THE KINGDOM WEEK 4 - TAKE THE HUMBLE PATH WEEK 5 - WRESTLE WITH GOD WEEK 6 - FOLLOW JESUS Whether they are used for Lent or in another season, these reflections will invite you into deeper union and communion with the One who is "more near to you than you are to yourselves" (Augustine).