The end of our Lenten journey is in sight.

Having travelled through the depths of the wilderness, we begin our slow but certain ascent towards Jerusalem, where we will walk with our Lord through the events of Holy Week, beginning next week with Palm Sunday.

If you’re anything like me, your experience of Lent has likely been a mixed bag. Lofty goals may have quickly given way to sober realism, with “maybe next year” becoming a reoccurring refrain frequently found upon your lips!

At the same time, you may have experienced real victory over sin and freedom from habits that deform and dehumanize you. Yet even then, we are painfully aware of our frailty and need, reminded again that some patterns of malformed living are harder to break than we would like to believe!

Remember, Lent is rarely, if ever, all victory or all defeat. It is a season in which we are simultaneously aware of both the grace of God, and our own capacity for sin and evil.

Success in Lent is therefore not measured by your ability to break every habit or transform every pattern of being within the six-week window. In fact, the only way we fail in Lent is if we miss the invitation before us to encounter the life of God in and through the struggle.

The good news of the gospel is that you and I can participate in the grace of God in the midst of our broken and fallen state. And so, we press on towards the goal of Easter Sunday, hopeful, yet ever aware of our need for the Lord to see us through to the end.

Prayer of the Week

Almighty God, you alone can bring into order the unruly wills and affections of sinners: Grant your people grace to love what you command and desire what you promise; that, among the swift and varied changes of the world, our hearts may surely there be fixed where true joys are to be found; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Prayer for the Fifth Sunday in Lent

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Most of the time, we approach Lent from a highly personal, even private, perspective.

We see it as a season of renewal and spiritual reawakening, a six-week boot camp of sorts. Our hope is to emerge from this season of preparation with deeper devotion to Christ, more consistent habits of prayer, and a better rein on our desires and passions. And while all of this is right and good, if it is the whole of our vision for this season, we may have failed to grasp one of its foundational purposes.

If Lent doesn’t deepen in us a greater love for God and our neighbor, we have entirely missed the point.

If we want to grow in our life with Christ, we must learn to love what he loves. When we serve others, we are close to the heart of Jesus. We are invited to follow his example of service and turn outwards, away from self-interest and towards a world in need.

Christian service takes many forms, including care for the poor, opening your table or home to someone in need of a bed or a meal, or offering a listening ear and compassionate heart to a troubled soul. Yet whatever form it may take, love must be our guiding light.

To love is to will the good of another. Service is love in action, concretely applying our belief in Christ to the decisions we make and ways we spend our time, money, and relationships. In the name of Christ, may we love others as we have been loved (John 13:34).

Prayer of the Week

Gracious Father, whose blessed Son Jesus Christ came down from heaven to be the true bread which gives life to the world: Evermore give us this bread, that he may live in us, and we in him; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Prayer for the Fourth Sunday in Lent

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If you’re honest, fasting likely isn’t something that gets you excited.

A single day of fasting is hard enough, but a six-week period of self-denial? No thanks! Perhaps this is one of the biggest hurdles for you to get over when it comes to embracing the Lenten season.

Hard as it may be, we must begin to see fasting as a foundational part of the Christian life. Without a rhythm of saying no, we will indiscriminately say yes to everything. Fasting teaches us the gift of limitations, the freedom that is found within healthy borders.

In fact, if we don’t fast, we’ll never learn to truly feast.

Culturally and materially, we live in a world of excess. We have more entertainment, food, and recreation than we know what to do with. As such, we often do our best to maximize our calendars and credit cards in pursuit of these various forms of pleasure. And while many of them may be harmless enough, and even life-giving, they fill us up to the brim, leaving no room for anyone, or anything else.

Fasting is therefore less about what you give up and more about what is gained when you create room for others. Limiting your food intake puts more money in your wallet that can be used to bless a friend or neighbor. Fasting from social media reminds you of the need for deep and embodied relationships. Simplifying your calendar creates space for you to silence the noise and distraction, so you can hear afresh from the Lord.

Fasting may be challenging at first, but press in and allow it to awaken you to the good life of God’s kingdom!

Prayer of the Week

Almighty God, you know that we have no power in ourselves to help ourselves: Keep us both outwardly in our bodies and inwardly in our souls, that we may be defended from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts which may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Prayer for the Third Sunday in Lent

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If you’ve dipped your toes in the Lenten waters, you’ve likely noticed that prayer is a central part of this journey.

We pray prayers that spontaneously rise up in our hearts, yet we also pray as we listen to the Bible, with saints and heroes of the faith, and using traditional prayers that help us walk through each week of Lent in a posture of attentive listening to the Lord. 

If you aren’t accustomed to this practice, praying prayers written by someone else might feel a bit weird. These prayers may feel stale, impersonal, or detached from the everyday experience of life. You might say, “How can someone who lived hundreds of years ago possibly know what I’m feeling in this present moment?” If you can suspend your skepticism for just a moment, the answer might surprise you.

Written prayers train and inform our spontaneous prayers. And be careful, before you know it, these “stuffy” prayers just might become a prayer of your heart! 

If we’re honest, we don’t exactly know how to pray well. Very few of us would be so bold as to claim expertise in this area. In fact, Jesus’ own disciples struggled with prayer, so at least we’re in good company.


Do you remember how Jesus responded when his disciples expressed their struggles with prayer? Did he tell them to pray whatever came to mind, or to only pray in times of crisis or great need? No, believe it or not, Jesus gave them a “written” prayer: “Our Father, who art in heaven…” (Mt 6:9)

It is essential for us to engage our hearts in prayer, but our hearts are not always trustworthy guides and often need to be helped in the right direction. We can be consumed with our own desires, and so we must learn to pray “thy Kingdom come” before we begin to pray “give us this day.” We say “hallowed be thy name,” which leads us into the contrition of “forgive us our trespasses.” Whether it is the Lord’s Prayer, or the countless prayers based upon it, consider the ways the Holy Spirit might be at work today in and through these ancient words from the past!

Prayer of the Week

O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word, Jesus Christ your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Prayer for the Second Sunday in Lent

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Lent is a journey with a clear destination.

When I look at where we’re headed, I am today reminded of our Lord’s words spoken in the garden to his disciples: “So, could you not stay awake with me one hour” (Mt 26:40)? In order to walk through Lent in a meaningful and redemptive way, we must hear these words asked directly to us.

In Lent, Jesus looks at each of us with love and compassion and says, “Are you awake?”

Attentive living is closely related to spiritual alertness. It is the realization that we are so often asleep in our faith, drifting from one place to the next without actively or intentionally cultivating a listening ear to the words of God spoken over us.

To be attentive is to be clear-headed. In Lent, we remove the distractions and vices that keep us sleepy and numb to our life with Christ. In fact, attentiveness in Scripture is often seen as the opposite of drunkenness. It is for this reason that Peter encourages Christians to “be sober-minded and watchful” (1 Pet 5:8). 

Sometimes, our spiritual sickness is seen in and through deliberate and obvious actions. We lash out at others in anger or rage. We indulge the flesh. We consume in ways that steal from our neighbor. However, it is our passive inattention that is often our greatest threat.

It is possible to sleepwalk your way through life. To wake, eat, drink, work, play, sleep, rinse and repeat, yet entirely miss God in the process. Lent reminds us that it doesn’t have to be this way. Within every question is an invitation, and today Jesus is inviting us to discover the joy that comes from clear-headed and attentive living.

Prayer of the Week

Almighty God, whose blessed Son was led by the Spirit to be tempted by Satan: Come quickly to help us who are assaulted by many temptations; and, as you know the weaknesses of each of us, let each one find you mighty to save; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Prayer for the First Sunday in Lent

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