in preparation for Lent

Note: Though not all Christians practice or observe Lent, the purpose of Lent can be universal for us all.  So if you typically to do observe Lent, I encourage you to read this prayer as a simple act of surrender - for a season or even for today - asking God to reveal to you what he is calling you surrender or sacrifice to right now.

 Father,

We praise You for all the ways You have shown Yourself faithful to us this past year. We praise You for how You have strengthened our relationship with You in the midst of questions and doubts, and we praise You even for the dark times which cause us to cry out to You. (Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. -James 1:2-4) It has not been easy to find that joy, so please help us persevere in continuing to search and seek for it as we are tested and matured.

In the next 40 days, as we consider the time Your Son spent withdrawn in the desert, please You reveal to us the ways in which we can most honor You in the days leading up to the celebration of Easter. We desire to live in victory, but know that without the darkness of Good Friday, the victory of Easter wouldn't be the powerful victory it is. We must learn to examine the darkness of our hearts and see the sin that still lives within us, the reason the cross was necessary. 

Show us the parts of us that we have not fully surrendered to You. Whether it's giving something up as an act of surrender or taking something on as an act of sacrifice, remind us to examine ourselves so that we are continually growing to be more like Your Son, Jesus.

Search me, God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts. 

 See if there is any offensive way in me,
    and lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalm 139: 23-24)

 

Amen

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