Good evening, fellow redeemed!
Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday. Tomorrow begins the holy season of Lent, forty days of contrition and repentance as we walk the road to the cross which our Lord Jesus Christ bore for us. The forty days follow Jesus' fasting and praying in the wilderness before being tempted by Satan (Matthew 4, Luke 4).
One of the big questions about this blessed season is: What are you giving up for Lent?
To be sure, a Lenten fast is a good thing. Fasting is an activity in which we refrain from something, usually eating, in order to spend time in repentance and prayer. In Jesus' directions concerning fasting and praying in Matthew 6, Jesus' plan is that we fast (giving up a meal or eating for a day). The money spent on food would then be given to the poor (alms) and time spent preparing and eating the food would be spent in prayer and meditation on God's Word. Sometimes, as recommended by our Lord, the Lenten fast is a very private matter.
Ash Wednesday divine service Mt. Olive will be held at 12:15 and 7:15 p.m. A special meal of Christian fellowship is made available by the Sunday School teachers tomorrow beginning at 6 p.m. The menu is Italian casseroles, salad, bread, and dessert.
The sermon series for the Lenten season will present us with the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ as it applies to our life in this dying world. Our focus will be on the Gospel's answer to what many in our world call postmodernism, using 1 Peter as the text.
Please join us as we enter this holy season, as we contemplate our sinfulness for which Christ came to die, as we walk the road to the cross, as we see our Lord die His life-giving death, and we await the news of the empty tomb.
God bless!
Pastor Kevin Jennings
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