After his suffering, he spoke to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. Acts 1:3-4
One of the first things I did Easter morning was go for a diet coke. I'm probably more than a little addicted, but this year (for the first time ever!), I successfully gave it up for the entire 40 days of Lent. While giving up only one type of drink may not seem like that much of a sacrifice, for me, it most certainly was, and I definitely needed to depend on God to get through those withdrawal caffeine headaches. When I was thinking about Lent this morning, I came across a special on the history channel (boy am I cool!) about the 40 days Jesus spent on earth after his resurrection. What struck me first was how little I think about this time in Jesus's ministry. Sure, we put a lot of focus on Jesus's sacrifice in Lent, and rightly so, but I spend almost no time thinking about all of the teaching that Jesus did AFTER He was crucified and rose again. Turns out He did some pretty amazing things like teaching the word to 2 travelers on the road to Emmaus, appearing to His disciples to confirm that He did in fact, rise from the dead, and giving the great commission.
To me, it seems like in this time, Jesus was all about clarifying to people exactly who He was and quelling their doubts and disbeliefs. It seemed like an awesome time to get to know Jesus intimately. While focusing on Jesus's sacrifices in Lent certainly draws us closer to Him, I have to admit, sometimes when I focus on sacrificing things, I try do it by my own willpower instead of by drawing closer to the Lord. So, I'm proposing a challenge: instead of the 40 days of sacrifice of Lent BEFORE Easter, 40 days of intimately knowing and practically experiencing the resurrection of Lord in our lives AFTER Easter. I'm not exactly sure what form this is going to take yet, but I thinking about starting by exploring on the things the Lord taught in His 40 days on earth after the resurrection and being very deliberate about seeking God's presence (read: set-aside daily quiet times AND a deliberate focus to continually seek God's presence in other activities!). These are definitely things we should focus on always, but if you're at all like me, a little kickstart motivation never hurt! I would absolutely love to have you all join me (and would love to pray for you about it)! Let's roll until ascension Sunday (and beyond of course!)!
After the Lord had spoken to them, He was taken up into heaven and He sat at the right hand of God. Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed His word by the signs that accompanied it. Mark 16:19-20
Betsy, I like your challenge idea! I'll throw in for thought: it wasn't until very recently in my Christian walk that I was taught a concept that to experience the power of the resurrection in my life, I would have to experience first the death of Christ in my life. I've always wondered exactly what it means to "take up my cross daily." Through much reading and thought, it came to me that it means to carry it with me and be ready to die to myself sometime during the day when I had a choice to do what I wanted to do or to do what the Lord wanted me to do, or what was best for someone else that day. I don't have that thought every day....but maybe for 40 days? As a background for thinking during the 40 day challenge? Just an idea.....thanks for taking the time to blog!
ReplyDeleteBetsy, what a great idea! I'm pledging to give up TV altogether, since it usually is just a huge time waster and distracts me from seeking God. Thanks for the suggestion--- and congrats on going without DC for so long! Wow, I know how much you love it =)
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