Lent

You can’t just turn up and compete in an Olympic Games.  The road to the Olympics requires considerable self-sacrifice, training and preparation.  And you can’t  get a car licence without first obtaining a learner’s permit and undergoing a test.

In fact, there’s not a lot any of us can achieve without first going through a period of learning and preparation.

We go to school to prepare us for a career and life itself.  We study to pass exams.  We generally have a trial on probation, before being appointed to a permanent position and we have an engagement period, before getting married.

With a positive outlook, our forward focus through life is aimed at achieving our goals, rather than centring on the pain of the preparation.

So, it seems obvious, for us to really appreciate the true significance of Easter, we need first to undergo a time of preparation.  Many Churches refer to this period as the season of Lent.

For some of us our Lenten journey can be achieved by mentally retracing the steps of our Saviour on the road to Calvary. Alternatively, we can make this journey more positive if we look beyond Calvary to focus on the miracle of the Easter Sunday Resurrection.

We can experience the joy of Easter more fully by preparing during the Lenten period,  bearing in mind that by dying, Jesus proved to us all he was man, but by rising, He proved He was God.

I’m Peter Mack and that’s faith.

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