40 Days of Jesus and People
Forty Days of Jesus and People : Lent 2021
This year we are spending time in each season of the church calendar. Why? Because our calendar often shows us what is important to us and what our life orients around. The other reason is stated in the vision of C3 Fort Worth. We want people to see Jesus like never before! And in this way, celebrating holidays or seasons that many of us have never celebrated or have treated as legalistic and ritualistic, we are giving ourselves a chance to see and experience the story of Jesus in a brand new way.
And because of that, this year we are observing the season of Lent as a church. So that probably leads to the first question, “What is Lent?” Read on.
What Is Lent?
The word “Lent” can invoke a number of thoughts, questions and feelings, depending on your background with the Church. If you grew up in an evangelical church, you probably think of it as some strange Catholic tradition, where folks put ashes on their foreheads and give up different kinds of foods every year. If you grew up in a liturgical tradition, you may have had a good experience or, perhaps, you file it away in the junk drawer of legalism given some bad experiences. Whatever the case, Lent doesn’t have to be seen as either rote or mystifying. Like the rest of the seasons, it can be seen rightly and faithfully when understood through the lens of Jesus—the one true story of the Bible.
Lent begins with Ash Wednesday, February 17th, which kicks off 40 days of prayer and fasting—representing Jesus’ 40 days in the wilderness. The last week of Lent is called Holy Week, during which we remember Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday), the Last Supper with His disciples (Maundy Thursday) and His death on the cross (Good Friday). The season officially ends on Holy Saturday, the day before Easter, April 4th.
In a culture inundated by individualism and hedonism, with rhythms and practices that turn our desires toward the things we think we need, Lent turns our desires toward Jesus, the only thing we truly need, helping us trade lesser loves for His greater love. It is a season to prepare for the joy and hope of Easter.
While Advent is a celebration and a time of great anticipation, Lent is more frequently seen as a time of solemn observance and preparation for the celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus at Easter. Just as we carefully prepare for events in our personal lives, as a wedding, or birthday; a commencement Lent invites us to make our minds and hearts ready for remembering Jesus’ life, death and body resurrection.
Observing Lent
We are walking through Lent in a unique way. Rather than simply thinking of Lent as a season of giving up things in our lives, we are turning it into what we can give out to those in our lives. So below, you will find four ways we are observing Lent together as a church. We’re calling this season 40 Days of Jesus and People.
40 Days of Jesus
Traditionally one would observe lent through prayer and fasting. Whether by giving up food or possibly a single item during the 40 days. We are encouraging you to do the same. Prayer, like what we see when Jesus often withdrew to pray, is a time for us to look upon Jesus as we seek to look more and more like him.
As you pray, here are three books we would recommend or we would suggest finding a reading plan on YouVersion that walks you through one or all of the four Gospels over the coming weeks.
Circle Maker by Mark Batterson
May It Be So by Scott Erickson and Justin McRoberts
How to Pray: A Simple Guide for Normal People by Pete Greig
40 Days of People
Often as we grow more and more aware of who Jesus is we become more and more aware of those around us. Our hope during these forty days is that as we look upon Jesus we begin to love as he did. So we have created a list of 40 simple ways to show love to those around us that we can all do at home, work, or in our city. We believe these can jumpstart a new way of serving people. These are great ideas for you to do as an individual, with friends, or with your family.
Gathered Weekly Prayer
There are very few things more special and powerful than the corporate prayer of the body of Christ. So during this Lent season, we will gather online and in-person every Wednesday at noon for prayer, word, and worship. You can either meet us at our building (1917 W Bowie St) or join us online (FB, Instagram, or YouTube).
Every Sunday A Feast
Sundays during Lent are very important to Christians around the world. Where the Monday to Saturday of each of the six weeks are concerned with fasting and abstinence, the Sunday is a celebration symbolic of Christ’s resurrection. Instead of fasting, Christians hold feasts in remembrance of Christ’s sacrifice.
So each Sunday during Lent we will be emphasizing the table and community as we celebrate Jesus in his death and resurrection. We will either pick a restaurant that we can all go to or we will cater a meal to our building. Either way, we will party together and feast in celebration.