If you’ve been reading this blog for a while, you know it’s unorthodox. If you are new to this page, welcome. Today’s topic is: A typical Christian’s response to the end of Lent.
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For most Christians, Christmas is the big holiday. You get to celebrate the birth of your Savior, meet up with friends, celebrate with family. For the rest of us, Easter is the point of the whole exercise – redemption, resurrection, eternal life. If you go to the blog roll on the right you will no doubt find many blogs talking about those topics today. All of them will be right – it is a great day today, the beginning of the end for death. On Sunday, death dies.
The reality is that many people who identify as Christians are thinking about the fact that they’ve made it through Lent with their sacrifice intact. This year I gave up pastry, donuts, bakery (unless I was at a restaurant – exactly once in the last month) and continued with my 12 hour a day fasting plan. I’d started the fast at the beginning of the year, and last night it dawned on me that I was doing pretty well. I’d started the 12 hour a day thing to offer up something to God for a dream I was pursuing. I will likely continue it to remind me, each day, that I owe God more than a little something. Every time I’m hungry (which is frequent) I thank Him for my gifts and the fact that my hunger is optional.
Last night, however, I became a little crazed with the cumulative effects of all this fasting. I dove into the bag of cashews on my desk, I snarfed candy, I … well, I still fasted 12 hours but I did think an awful lot about:
Today’s Thai pizza. Yes, a pizza with chicken, basil, shredded carrots, garlic, and other Thai spices. That is scheduled for noon. I will be sharing it with my friend Brenda.
My planned run to the Mexican Bakery Saturday so that when I break the fast on Sunday I will have a large assortment of cookies to feast upon.
Those succulent Mineola oranges on my desk. Sweet, tart, juicy – I could use one right about now but I have an hour to go in the fast….
Finally, I thought about the fact that my little offering hasn’t even got a patch on hanging on a cross.
Thanks, God, for sending your son. Thanks, Jesus, for taking my filth and hauling it away.
I guess I can continue the daily fast for a while longer. It’s a good reminder of what He’s done for me. But today, that pizza sure sounds good.
Have a blessed Easter.
