Do all Christians give up something for Lent?
Observing Lent looks different for everyone. While this form of fasting is typically tied to the Catholic denomination of Christianity, all Jesus followers can observe the Lenten season as a way to prepare their hearts for Easter.
What is Lent?
Lent is a 40-day time of fasting prior to Easter — we’ll get into exactly what that means in a moment — as a way to remember two things: Jesus’ 40-day fast in the wilderness prior to the launch of His public ministry and His sacrifice for humanity on the cross.
Every year, Lent kicks off on Ash Wednesday (you’ve probably seen people walking around with a smudge on their foreheads). Ash Wednesday is also typically observed in the Catholic faith, and is a day of repentance and remembrance. After Ash Wednesday, the Lenten season lasts for 40 days and ends the day prior to Easter.
Because Easter (and Passover) are based on lunar cycles — Easter is the first Sunday after the paschal full moon — the dates for the Lenten season change every year.
Is fasting required for Lent?
Some Christians choose to fast during Lent. Fasting is often done to remember Jesus Christ’s 40 days in the wilderness fasting and being tempted by Satan. While fasting definitely has benefits, and while it can help draw us closer to God, it’s not a requirement. God doesn’t require us to fast to earn His love. He gives it freely.
If you do choose to fast, you can fast on your terms. You can choose what days you’d like to fast, how many days you’d like to fast or even if you’re only choosing to fast from certain foods.
Many churches participate in a corporate fast, where members of the congregation fast together (though individuals can determine what their fast consists of), and the church will provide community prayer time and daily verses to meditate on in this season of drawing closer to God.
Examples of things to give up for Lent
Food (modified).
There are different levels of fasting from food, and we strongly recommend you do only what you are comfortable with and what is medically appropriate for you in this season of life. While some people drop down to one meal a day (with lots of water and juices throughout the day), others may choose to give up one meal a day, creating a hunger that reminds them of God’s provision. Instead of turning to food, we can turn to God in prayer and praise Him for His constant provision — that even though we are choosing to feel hunger in this season, we don’t have to worry about where our next meal will come from because He has provided for all of our needs.
Some people also choose to give up different food groups in an effort to become healthier and honor the body that God has given them. Food groups like sugar and caffeine can become addicting at certain levels, so these can be great options to remove for Lent.
Physical distractions.
Social media, streaming services and video games are all incredibly addictive and can become a huge time suck, not just distracting us from time spent with God, but also distracting us from the people and life around us. The average person spends 2.5 hours a day on social media alone, and yet we complain about not having enough time in the day to do what we want/need to do.
Giving up a physical distraction is a great way to reprioritize the important things in life and align our priorities with what God has called us into: relationship with Him and with those around us.
Spiritual disciplines.
Sometimes practicing a spiritual discipline is better than fasting anything for Lent. We all have areas of our life and behaviors that just do not match up with the rhythms of God’s world. Lent is a great way to sync our souls back up with the pace of life that God has designed.
Examples of spiritual disciplines could be to read our Bible every morning, take a full Sabbath every week or to stop gossiping/complaining.
In the same way that giving up something can create a physical reminder to draw your attention back to God (e.g., whenever you get that urge to scroll through your friends’ stories, you choose to pray for your friends instead), creating a spiritual discipline can help you lean into God’s provision, knowing that He will meet you whenever you step out to be closer to Him.
One great verse that is helpful to repeat to yourself whenever creating a new discipline is Colossians 3:23 (NLT):
Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.
You are choosing to do this as a way to honor God, not as a way to appease the people around you.
Centerpoint Church is ready to walk with you on your faith journey
At Centerpoint, our community believes in purpose and passion, and we would love to walk with you on your journey in finding yours. You can also find out what our community’s purpose and passion are all about by checking out some of the past sermons we’ve posted on our website.
Do you want to grow in your faith, or are you simply curious about who this Jesus guy is? You’re not alone. We encourage you to listen to our podcast series online and welcome you to come to one of our Sunday morning services in Valrico, Florida.