Sermon: “All-Church Retreat: May 7, 2023”

For many, Lent can carry a lot of religious baggage. A season of self-denial seems masochistic, joyless, and arbitrary. Why focus so much time and energy on repentance and self-denial, when we’ve been given forgiveness and freedom in Christ? And yet, we practice self-denial in other areas of our lives when it suits our desires and goals. We diet to lose a few pounds, cut down screen time at night to sleep better, and choose to spend less money on entertainment to save for a down payment. When it comes to optimizing our lives and realizing our goals, we recognize self-denial can be a useful tool. But during the season of Lent, we do not see self-denial as a tool to self-actualize, but an invitation to practice being in the presence of God. We deny ourselves a little time to do what we want – in order to explore and pray for what God wants. For 40 days, we practice taking on the mind of Christ: who, for the joy set before him, endured the cross (Hebrews 12:2). So we, for the joy set before us at Easter, the resurrection of Jesus and God’s promise of eternity with Him, we too, endure the 40-day journey to the cross. This Lenten season, we’ll be meditating on the Lord’s Prayer, where Jesus teaches us how to pray with the kingdom in mind. Each week we will explore one of the seven petitions, and each day we will take time to repent together and reflect on a passage of Scripture. We hope these short meditations written and read by members of our community will help us bring our honest selves before our Heavenly Father who knows us and loves us, and help us practice praying as Jesus Taught Us to Pray.

From Series: "As Jesus Taught Us to Pray"

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