Thank you, Aunt Cookie!

For several years, I have hoped to find some ways to make our celebration of Easter more meaningful.  After the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays, we tend to throw ourselves back into the work and school routine so vigorously, that Good Friday comes upon us with a shock.  There have been years that I didn't even realize that Easter weekend was upon me until the night before.

I know that God does not need me to make up elaborate ceremonies to worship Him, and I do not want to become dogmatic, prescriptive, or rigid about our "family ways".  I am even aware that the dates that Christendom has traditionally ascribed to Christ's birth, death, and resurrection are not technically accurate.

But I find the celebrations to be helpful in drawing my gaze off of the mundane, out of the world, and into the worship of some specific action, attitude, or attribute of Christ.   The Old Testament is full of God-ordained feasts and remembrances.  Israel was told to always hold the works of God before the eyes of their children, lest they forget and wander.  I find I need to do the same. 

 We were thrilled to discover Advent and Epiphany some years back.  During the months of December and January as our family draws itself out of daily routine for a purposeful meditation on some aspect of Christ's nativity, we have found new richness in the season.  

So, with Ash Wednesday approaching, I was hoping I could find a handy "Protestant Guide for Celebrating Lent" or even a "Lent for Dummies" book .  Alas, no luck!   But I am determined not to skid into the pew on Easter Sunday without having first brought my mind and heart to a standstill before the cross.

 So I am cobbling together a plan using some lovely ideas  from the "40 Ideas for 40 Days" website of Joe Paprocki from Chicago, as well as some things from my cursory research of Lent--and a few things out of my own head.   Thanks to Jamey's Aunt Cookie for giving me a place to start by sharing the "40 Days" site with us!  

And now, a disclaimer:   Not being a Catholic, I am coming to this in complete ignorance of the Lenten traditions.  I am also a little rushed since Lent is already upon us, so I am seeing this as our trial run and I am sharing it with all it's rough edges poking out.  Feel free to make suggestions!  I welcome your ideas!  

Finally, my devotional ideas are intentionally vague.  My husband leads our family devotions beautifully, as the Spirit leads him.  The last thing I want to do is hand him a script. This is more of a "direction", which he will tweak as he guides us through each evening.



Ash Wednesday--A Study of Repentance

As I understand it, Lent is a season of prayer, repentance, and recommittment, whose purpose is to lead the believer into a deeper appreciation for Christ's sacrifice and a purposeful posture of humility and worship in the days leading up to Good Friday and Easter Sunday.  

• Today we took a bowl of ashes from the fireplace and made a cross on each child's forehead.  We talked about how important it is to confess our sins to God and to one another, and how feeling the ashes on our foreheads during the day and seeing them on one another could prompt us to examine our hearts frequently, with a view to repentance.

•  We read a passage from our Illustrated Dictionary of Bible Life and Times about the use of ashes to express mourning and repentance.  

•  We had the children come up with Bible characters whom they remembered as using ashes to express those emotions mourning or repentance. 

•  Discussed the concept of repentance and its connection to God's forgiveness and had children look up some passages about repentance using the concordances in the back of their Bibles.  (Some of the great ones were 2 Chronicles 32:26, Jeremiah 31:19, Matthew 3:8, Matthew 21:32, Luke 17:3-4, Acts 3:19, Romans 2:4,  2 Corinthians 7:9-10, 2 Timothy 2:24-26, Revelation 3:19)
• Discussed the idea of fasting from something during the Lenten season to draw our hearts toward more constant prayer.  

Assignment for tomorrow is to come up with something "dear" that will be given up privately for that purpose.  The guideline we gave was that it needed to be something that was enjoyed frequently and would be missed often.  (So Elijah's idea of "homework" and Christina's suggestion of "exercise" were nixed immediately:)  My comment was that  the thing that pops into your mind that you immediately dismiss as being "too extreme" would probably be a good thing to pick!  Like coffee:)  Other ideas offered by the children were bread, radio theater, fiction reading, movies, i-pod, and dessert.  We will share as a family tomorrow what we have chosen, but will not discuss our sacrifices publicly, lest it become a matter of pride. 
 

Thursday--Declaration of Dependence based on the Lord's Prayer (Joe Paprocki's idea)

• Read the Lord's Prayer (Matthew 6) 
• Discuss the seven petitions.  In the first 3 "thy name, thy kingdom, thy will" our focus is drawn completely off of ourselves and onto God.  
• In the last 4 "give us, forgive us, lead us not, and deliver us" we are "commending our wretchedness to His grace."   
• Discuss the meaning of "hallowed be thy name".  Emphasize that we do not make it holy, but rather we recognize it as such.
•  As a family, discuss the idea of a "Declaration of Dependence" upon God.  What is our need?  What did God provide?  We plan to draw our declaration up on paper and then have the family members sign it.
• Reveal the "fast", or sacrifice we have chosen for the Lenten season. 

Friday--Lenten Crosses

• We have printed out blank calendar pages for the 40 days of Lent (or you could use the print-out from http://catechistsjourney.loyolapress.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/40-crosses-english.pdf )  Our focus on these crosses will be ideas for acts of service, sacrifice or mercy, or specific prayer requests.  
• Have (or help) the children fill out ideas for things they could go out of their way to do for others during this season.  When they accomplish one of their goals, they can write it in, or color the cross.  Even small children can be encouraged to complete extra acts of service for others, and they are often the most faithful pray-ers.  Try to do at least one each day.

• Jamey will lead devotional on what Christian love looks like.  He just finished reading a book called The Meaning of Marriage so I know he will probably use some material from that, as well as the wealth of Scripture on love.  "We love because He first loved us." 1 John 4:19  

Our hearts are bent toward one another, not as a means to earn grace, but out of gratitude for the grace given to us! 

Saturday--Study on one of the names of Christ:  The Lamb of God

• This devotional will focus on the nature of the sacrificial lamb--not just cute and cuddly, but a sacrifice.
• Illustrated Bible Dictionary has detailed explanations of what was involved in Hebrew sacrificial system.  Also laid out in OT Scripture.  (Exodus 12, 29:38-42, among other places)
• Discuss the passages that describe Christ as the Lamb (Exodus 12:1-2, 1 Peter 1:18-19, Isaiah 53:7, 1 Corinthians 5:7, John 19:31, Revelation 5:9)
• End by singing the Twila Paris song "Lamb of God"  

Jamey will likely add so much more when we actually do these activities!  I will take notes on what transpires and make a family Lent notebook, which I can share if anyone is interested, but I urge you to let the Spirit move your family as He will!

I learned that there are no Sunday Lent activities since Sunday is always a day of celebration.  Hallelujah!  He is risen!

I will be posting plans for the next week's activities as soon as I scratch them together:)