Lent in 2011 will start on Wednesday, the 9th of March and will continue for 46 days until Saturday, the 23rd of April.
In Western Christianity Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and concludes on Holy Saturday. The six Sundays in Lent are not counted among the forty days of lent because each Sunday represents a "mini-Easter", a celebration of Jesus' victory over sin and death. The usual practice is to give up something we enjoy to remind of of what Christ gave up for us.
Traditionally The Wesleyan Church has not observed Lent in the manner of the mainline churches. This probably has a lot to do with the Quaker and Pilgrim Holiness influence. However the Church of England did and John Wesley continued the practice. Here are some of his thoughts which would suggest he believed self-denial to be of importance in daily living:
In the book titled, John Wesley the Methodist, it is said that Wesley taught, “God loves you; therefore love and obey him. Christ died for you; therefore die to sin.” Yes, Christ paid the price but it is our responsibility to be intentional in not allowing sin to encroach our lives.
Are you ready honor this time of Lent? Let us do more than “remember”. Let us use this time to make an intentional effort to live a life that truly glorifies the One we worship.
“That means you must not give sin a vote in the way you conduct your lives. Don’t give it the time of day. Don’t even run little errands that are connected with that old way of life. Throw yourselves wholeheartedly and full-time—remember, you’ve been raised from the dead!—into God’s way of doing things. Sin can’t tell you how to live. After all, you’re not living under that old tyranny any longer. You’re living in the freedom of God.” Romans 6:12-14 THE MESSAGE
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