We’re beginning the season of ”˜giving up’ things ”“ a tradition of Lent. So what to give up? For us Christians, it is about self-denial, yes, and making time for deeper prayer and repentance too.
But Lent isn’t simply about giving up something for a while, just to start it again when Easter arrives. We certainly shouldn’t be giving up good service to our neighbours, though we may wish to postpone excessive meetings about that work.
We certainly don’t give up meeting together to worship and study God’s Word. Repentance is about ”˜doing sorry’ ”“ turning away from wrong (sin) and in Lent we can take extra time to think about whether we’re living as God would have us live ”“ or, as the first of our themes puts it, discovering the heart of God.