Why I’m Not Observing Lent (This Year).

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Ever since I attended an Episcopal wedding about 15 years ago, I’ve loved “historical” church stuff. Liturgical worship, the church calendar, common prayer, creeds, confessions, et cetera… it was all new and fascinating for this kid who’d grown up “broadly evangelical.”

With that, I’ve observed the season of Lent consistently since then. They were fruitful observances – times of purposeful self-denial, self-examination, prayer, study, and looking with renewed intent upon Jesus and his work on the Cross.

But I’m not observing this year.What’s Different This Time?

Our church just got finished studying the book of Ecclesiastes together. What a refreshing, wise, brutally honest book; you don’t exactly expect the Bible to tell you that your life is “vapor” – something you can’t control, can’t predict, can’t nail it down. You don’t expect the Bible to talk about gritty, grimy stuff that we all know: “death comes to all”, “no matter how hard you work, you can’t take anything with you”, “whatever you gain in this life will go to someone else after you’re gone.” Bummers, all of ‘em.

Then Solomon said this…

Go, eat your bread with joy, and drink your wine with a merry heart, for God has already approved what you do.

Let your garments be always white. Let not oil be lacking on your head.

Enjoy life with the wife whom you love, all the days of your vaporous life that he has given you under the sun, because that is your portion in life and in your toil at which you toil under the sun. Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.

(Ecclesiastes 9:7-10)

In the midst of these declarations of the vaporous nature of life, “The Preacher” admonishes his readers to enjoy life. To eat good food and to drink good wine… not to refrain from it! To put oil on one’s head… not ashes! And that was the end of any thought of observing Lent for me this year.

See, I know myself. I know that I‘m already given to the kind of introspection and self-abasement commonly associated with Lent observation – the kind that can easily tip over into despair and self-loathing. But here, we see Scripture commending and commanding joy for God’s people. We see that the things that we enjoy, when enjoyed properly, are good gifts that God wants us to enjoy. Yeah, they’re vapor. So? They’re good vapor!

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that the observation of Lent is necessarily wrong, sinful, unwise, or anything like that. Not only that, but I don’t even think that Scripture and the Westminster Standards necessarily prohibit the observation of such a season. (I know that a number of my fellow PCA folks will disagree, and we can talk about that another time.) But, for me – this year, at least – it’s time to step back and “observe” joy in the Lord.

So… I’m not doing Lent this year. Yes, I’m still a sinner. I’m a worm. I’m the worst guy I know. (Really, I am.) But I’ve got a good Savior who has removed (and is removing) all that crap.  Ecclesiastes tells us that there’s a time to weep and a time to laugh. I’ve got the weeping part down. Laughter’s time has come.

  • http://twitter.com/tapper Bob Willits

    May I be the 1st ever to comment on your blog which I know will have a long rich history. I’ve never observed Lent, but I’ve never had a problem with anyone who observes it. I like your comments of enjoying the good gifts that God takes pleasure in watching us enjoy.
    Salud!

    • http://raewhitlock.com/ Rae Whitlock

      Glad you’re here, Tapper.

  • Chris Walk

    Good blog Rae. You mentioned Ecclesiastes 3. I see your point about living as if all year is Lent. So for you, focusing on the joy of life will probably be a difficult practice for you, one that will require dependence upon God. Therefore, it is a proper Lenten discipline for you. Pardon the analogy, but it is similar to encouraging a woman who suffers from an eating disorder to practice eating something sweet each day of Lent. With that said, perhaps the original intent of the church calendar was for most of the year to be lived with celebration, as the Preacher claims, but within that year a season is devoted to penance and meditating on our brokenness. Right now, you’ve got it the other way around.

    Second, I’ve been thinking lately about how we see guilt. Many Christians today are taught to experience guilt emotionally. I’m suppose to feel remorse and sad about my sin. I don’t see anything wrong with that to a point, but I wonder if the church puts too much emphasis on that, as if they were the be all end all of confession and repentance. That is a rather existential way of looking at sin. Guilt to the Jewish people was an ontological category. You are actually guilty before God, and that needs to be dealt with. Actual repentance is required. I wonder then how that applies to our observance of Lent. Don’t have an actual answer to that; it’s just food for thought.