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Lent: The Season of Repentance and Renewal
Lent: The Season of Repentance and Renewal
by Esau McCaulley
Ash Wednesday is the “kick off” event of Lent for Christians. There are many of us who, like the author, did not grow up in a church that participated in Lenten practices. In fact, my first exposure was a coworker who fasted and upped her walking every year for Lent. Colleagues who had worked with her for years said smirkingly that although she made sure everyone knew she was fasting, the effort was not really aimed at a closer relationship with God, but at attaining the beach body she wanted for spring vacation. Her motivation is between her and God; discerning it is not my job.
Over the years I have worshiped God in Baptist churches and independent mega-churches. Currently a part of the traditional liturgical movement, I am learning about Lent as practiced in the Book of Common Prayer. To that end, my book club has read Lent: The Season of Repentance and Renewal. It is part of the Fullness of Time series of which author McCaulley is the editor. The series is composed of short books written by various authors. They explain the various customs practiced by early Christians extending through our contemporary age. It is physically a beautiful series as the book covers are decorated with symbols and colors appropriate to each church season. The pages inside are incredibly smooth and slightly off-white. It is so elegantly designed that I can not bring myself to mark the many special passages or make notes in the margins.
Lent examines our need for repentance, the certainty of death, and the promise of eternal life in Jesus. McCaulley examines the rituals of Lent explaining how Christians can decide on a personal level what practices might be most useful with an emphasis on fasting. Fasting for food can be done in a variety of ways or not at all. Fasting might be giving up something else that is a distraction from devotion to God. Above all, I would say that the author’s approach is spiritual, not legalistic. There is no one right or wrong way to “do Lent.”
This little book also examines the collects (prayers) and the Scriptures associated with Lent in the Book of Common Prayer. It should be noted that McCaulley refers to the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. Most of the prayers found in my 1928 version and perhaps in other earlier or later editions are different from the ones he quotes. He chose that version because that is the one he was using when he began to practice Lent and therefore the one he is most comfortable providing discourse on. The differences don’t distract, but can provide more depth to the study of the season of Lent.
The last chapter deals with Holy Week, the last week in the life of Jesus Christ. This little tome details the various days such as Maundy Thursday, an important day because of the institution of the Lord’s Supper (Holy Communion or Eucharist). Less well known is the continuing practice of feet washing as set by the example of Jesus. Although Jesus’ message is clear and plain, “follow me and you will be saved,” there are many mysteries and much symbolism in the Bible. Perhaps McCaulley’s discussion of Lent will clarify for you the traditions that have emerged over the centuries.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Christian, Religion, Nonfiction
Notes: There are a few typos (probably generated by auto-correct) in this book which will hopefully be corrected in future printings. The other two books I read from this series did not have this problem.
Publication: 2022—InterVarsity Press
Memorable Lines:
Fasting then is not about us earning God’s forgiveness; it is about reminding ourselves through our fasting of our radical dependence on God.
Too often, Christians believe the lie that we have to dig down deep and discover in ourselves the strength and resolve to defeat our foes. Instead, we must realize that if we dig down to the bottom of ourselves, we’ll find a wounded soul in need of healing.
All these rituals, prayers, and ceremonies are simply doorways into the thing itself: God in all his splendor. May we find him afresh every year until we see him face-to-face.
You Were Made for This Moment–the God of great reversals
You Were Made for This Moment
by Max Lucado
Most of us are experiencing the “winter of our discontent” with ever-changing health orders, lockdowns, divisiveness on all fronts, inflation, shortages, and politicians who promise much and do little. Max Lucado has written a book that is very appropriate for these times, You Were Made for This Moment. It focuses on Queen Esther in the land of Persia. Her story is found in the book of Esther in the Old Testament of the Bible. The heroine has concealed her Jewish heritage, but now her people are about to be annihilated. Esther is the only Jew with access, limited as it is, to the throne room of the powerful Xerxes.
In his book, Lucado takes us through this dramatic tale, giving background to make it very understandable and including contemporary anecdotes to point out the relevancy of this situation to crises we might find ourselves in. Sometimes they are humorous, sometimes sad, but always they are pertinent. Both the short book of Esther and You Were Made for This Moment should be on a “must read” list for all as they display how God is always working behind the scenes. Our omnipotent God has power over rulers. We need to be open to what He asks us to do in our circumstances whether the situation looms large or is seemingly minor.
Through fasting and prayer, Esther came to understand that “silence is a form of acquiescence.” Although approaching the throne room uninvited was a potential invitation to death, she followed through to save her people with the famous line, “And if I perish, I perish.” Esther was indeed called for such a time as this.
Long a fan of the courageous Queen Esther, I enjoyed revisiting her story. My faith was confirmed, my attitude refreshed, and my courage bolstered. This is an inspiring book, and Lucado, as always, is a riveting storyteller.
Rating: 5/5
Category: Christian, Inspiration
Notes: 1. Take the time to read Max’s humble “Acknowledgements.” As a writer, he turns a “blah-blah” moment into one that will bring smiles to the hardest heart.
2. The book ends with “Questions for Reflection” prepared by Andrea Lucado. They are designed to accompany each chapter as you read it.
3. I also purchased the study guide, written in workbook format, with different questions from the ones in the book. The guide contains a code that gives streaming access to five videos prepared to accompany You Were Made for This Moment and the study guide. The videos feature Max Lucado as he brings the Esther story to life through a cast of characters simulating a dramatic production of the Esther story. As always, when Lucado speaks, listeners feel like the words are directed at them and for their benefit.
Publication: 2021—Thomas Nelson
Memorable Lines:
Seasons of struggle can be a treacherous time for the human heart. We are sitting ducks for despair and defeat. We turn away from others, turn our backs on God, and turn into fearful, cynical souls. Despair can be a dangerous season. But it can also be a developing time, a time in which we learn to trust God, to lean into his Word and rely on his ways.
God is in the details. He works in the small moments. The insignificant becomes significant because he is ever orchestrating the day-to-day details of innumerable lives through a millennia of time to do what he has foreordained to do.
In God’s hands no script is predictable, no story line is inevitable, no outcome is certain. He is ever a turn of the page from a turn-on-a-dime turnaround….He is the God of grand reversals.
Don’t tell God how big your storm is. Tell the storm how big your God is. Your problem is not that your problem is so big but that your view of God is too small.
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