“What Should I Give Up For Lent?”

“What Should I Give Up for Lent?”

           The purpose of “giving up something for Lent” is to create more room in our lives for God, and our relationship with him.

“What is Lent all about?”

            I grew up in the Church of the Nazarene in the 1960s.  The Church of the Nazarene is part of the “Wesleyan-Holiness” stream of Christianity.  Our church developed out of the Methodist Church in the late 1800s.  Like many Protestant churches at that time, we strove to distinguish ourselves from other churches. That meant that we did not “do” Ash Wednesday, or Lent. (We also didn’t pay too much attention to Advent, either, but that’s a story for another day.) I grew up with no understanding of the season of Lent.  That meant I had no experience with the fasting that comes with it.

            Fortunately, in my training for the ministry, I was blessed with a mentor who introduced me to the Christian calendar. He helped me to begin to understand how important it is in our spiritual journey. At about the same time, our denomination also began to “rediscover” Lent.  We published a series of devotional guides entitled Ashes to Fire (from Lent to Pentecost). I would guess that most Nazarene churches still do not have Ash Wednesday services.   At least many of us have found our way back to the idea of fasting during Lent in search of a greater experience of God’s presence.

“So what’s the deal with ‘giving something up’ for Lent?”

            The idea of “giving something up for Lent” is a broad way of looking at “fasting,” a classical Christian discipline and Biblical practice. Traditionally, “fasting” meant giving up food for a period of time. When Jesus was preparing for his ministry, he spent forty days fasting and praying in the Judean wilderness – and being tempted by Satan. (See the accounts in Matthew 4 and Luke 4.) The Jewish people were called to fast on certain days – for example, the Day of Atonement (see Leviticus 23). At times, leaders would call people to fast and pray to ask God to work in a particular way. For example, Esther asked Mordecai to have all the Jewish people fast and pray for three days before she went in to the king to plead for the Jewish people (Esther 4:15-17).

            Fasting from food is still a valuable spiritual practice. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “When you fast…” – not “if” you fast. But in our day, there are many other things from which we might fast in order to focus attention on God.  So what are some options? How can we decide what to “give up for Lent”?

“What should I give up for Lent?”

Food

            First, I would suggest that we give up something that is beneficial and enjoyable.  After all, if there is something “bad” in our lives, we ought to give that up anyway!  That’s why fasting traditionally involved food – because we all need to eat, and most of us enjoy it.  (Some of us enjoy it far too much!)

            But there are some people for whom a complete fast is simply not advisable. For example, people with blood sugar issues need to eat certain things, on a schedule which helps moderate highs and lows.  For many people, a fast could involve eliminating certain types of food.  Most people understand, for example, that Roman Catholics do not eat “meat” on Fridays during Lent. What may not be understood as well is the concept of a “fast day” that involves eating only one regular meal and one smaller meal – a practice that has also been common in certain Christian circles.

            Also, the idea of avoiding sweets during Lent led to the celebration known as “Fat Tuesday” – or “Mardi Gras” in French – where people celebrated before the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday. I grew up in an area with a sizable Polish population, so I am familiar with the popularity of “paczkis” (a type of jelly doughnut) in the days leading up to Ash Wednesday. The point here is that many people avoid sweets during Lent as a way of fasting.

Other Types of Fasts

            In recent years, the idea of a “social media fast” has become more common. I am certainly in favor of people considering their social media consumption and the impact it has on them spiritually.  However, I would offer one observation. If social media is having a consistent negative impact on our spiritual life and health, permanent changes are in order. But for many of us, the biggest issue with social media is the amount of time it absorbs in our daily schedule. In that case, a social media fast would provide additional time to focus on our relationship with God, and enable him to show us if further changes are needed.

            In the same vein, a fast from television might be in order. Depending on how much time we spend watching television, cutting back could provide more time for prayer, Scripture, and reflection. Part of that reflection might also include the types of television that we’re watching. Remember the principle: if there’s something “bad” in our lives, we need to get rid of it, not just “give it up” for a time.  Some people might find that watching news programs is spiritually damaging, fostering negative bitter attitudes. Others might find the same result with network programming. (Note: almost all of the television I watch involves sports. However, the commercials for network “entertainment” shows are at times appalling.)

            This brings me back to our basic principle: if it’s bad, get rid of it!  If it’s “good,” and enjoyable, might we not benefit from “giving it up” for a time in order to focus our attention on God?  Almost anything can be the proper subject of “fasting” if done to seek a deeper connection with God.  Fasting is a spiritual discipline, and to paraphrase Richard Foster in A Celebration of Discipline, a “spiritual discipline” is a way of creating more room for God to work in our lives.  And who wouldn’t want that?