Sixth Day of Lent (Tuesday, 20 February 2024)

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This week we focus on the Lenten theme of repentance.

Words of Reflection

As we think about repentance this week, it is vitally important that we always keep in mind what we considered yesterday—the truth that repentance is rooted in the love and mercy of God. If allow our understanding of repentance to go askew, what we often find is that our image of God becomes warped as well. We begin to see God as an angry and vengeful deity, eager to catch us in our sin and make us feel despised. That is not what Lent is about. Lent is always about God’s love, mercy, and grace shown supremely in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.

Yet there are many who struggle with that false image of God, and not just during Lent. Sometimes when we are face-to-face with the sin in our lives, immersed in the shame of feeling that we have disappointed or even angered God, it can cause us to withdraw. Like a child who is afraid of being punished, we lie about what we’ve done—to others, to ourselves, and we even may think we’ve gotten away with lying about it to God. And as that shame festers in our souls it becomes toxic, which can then further distort our image of God. It whispers horrible lies to us, saying, “You can’t go to God with this. You’ve disappointed him too many times. He has given up on you.” As our image of God becomes distorted, we can grow even more afraid of coming to him openly and honestly. It is a vicious downward spiral, feeding on itself in a frenzy of self-hatred and fear.

The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 5:8, “But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.” Sit with that verse for a moment and think about what it’s saying: it’s telling us that the sacrifice of Jesus is just a demonstration of God’s love—it’s definitive proof that, in the words of the familiar children’s song, “we are precious in his sight.” It’s also reminding us that this perfect, divine love did not wait for us to clean up our act first. It was demonstrated to us while we were still in the depths of our sin.

This is the kindness of God that leads to repentance. Even as he hung on the cross, Jesus asked God to forgive those who had tortured him and put him there. If there was ever a picture of the “tender mercy” of God, you’ll find it there. As you travel to Jerusalem with Jesus during these weeks, be sure to follow his heart as well as his footsteps, for his heart is filled with love for you. As one anonymous 19th century preacher put it, he is “the fountain of all gentleness, all kindness, and all good.”

All gentleness…all kindness…all good…this is the one who invites you to walk with him this Lenten journey and always.

Scripture for Meditation:

At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.
—Titus 3:37 (NIV)

Song: Your Kindness

Waiting for angry words to sear my soul
Knowing I don't deserve another chance
Suddenly the kindest words I've ever heard
Come flooding through my heart

It's Your kindness
That leads us to repentance, O Lord
Knowing that You love us
No matter what we do
Makes us want to love You, too

No excuse, no one to blame
Nowhere to hide
The eyes of God have found
My failures found my pain
He understands my weaknesses
And knows my shame
But His heart never leaves me

It's Your kindness
That leads us to repentance O Lord
Knowing that You love us
No matter what we do
Makes us want to love You
It's Your kindness
That leads us to repentance O Lord
Knowing that You love us
No matter what we do
Makes us want to love You, too

If You are for us
Who can be against us
You gave us ev'rything
Even Your only Son

It's Your kindness
That leads us to repentance O Lord
Knowing that You love us
No matter what we do
Makes us want to love You, too

Leslie Phillips

© 1985 Curb Word Music

Questions for Contemplation:

Have you ever had to wrestle with a distorted image of God? What was at the root of that distortion? Spend some time in prayer asking God to clear away any image you have that is not true to who he is.

How have you experienced God as “the fountain of all gentleness, all kindness, and all good?” How has your own journey of repentance and spiritual formation been formed by those experiences? Spend time in grateful prayer for this aspect of your walk with Christ.

When the Old Testament writers wished to speak of God’s kindness, they often used the Hebrew word “chesed.” It is a very rich word with deep meaning that is difficult to capture in English, and has been represented by words and phrases like:

lovingkindness

steadfast love

goodness

favor

mercy

loyalty

devotion

covenant love

Spend some time meditating on these words. Which resonates most with you? Why?

Fifth Day of Lent (Monday, 19 February 2024)

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This week we focus on the Lenten theme of repentance.

Words of Reflection

Repentance sits at the heart of our Lenten journey. It is perhaps the central theme of this season, as we seek to be cleansed and restored in preparation for our commemoration of Christ’s Passion. In countless Ash Wednesday services across the globe last week, the invitation to repent was given as we were reminded that we are “dead to sin and alive in Christ.” (Romans 6:11)

Following his temptation, the ministry of Jesus begins with a call to repent (Mark 1:15). The ministry of the disciples begins in a similar way, for when Peter is asked by the crowd on the day of Pentecost what they must do to be saved, he replies, “Repent and be baptized.” (Acts 2:38) The message of repentance is clearly foundational to the gospel. To follow Jesus fully, we must turn from sin and embrace the life he offers.

But far too often these days the call to repentance is presented as if it were an insistence on moral reform and behavior modification, so it’s no wonder it falls so often on deaf ears. The message so many hear from today’s church is that they are doing wrong things and if they would just stop doing them, then God would love them. What they receive is a message of shame, and what they do is simply walk away.

That is not biblical repentance. Biblical repentance is rooted in the love and mercy of God. It is not founded on our ability to change ourselves, it is founded on the supernatural ability of God to effect change in us by his Spirit. What it asks of us is humility and a willingness to be changed. What it asks of us is surrender, not to a wrathful God who will punish us if we don’t, but to a merciful God who stands ready to transform us into the people he desires us to be. Remember: it is his kindness that leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4).

One of the foundational texts for understanding repentance is Psalm 51, the prayer that David offers in response to his own sin being discovered. As you read it today, note the confidence David has in the grace and transforming power of God. Pay attention to his trust that God will take his contrite heart and restore it. David does not shy away from the reality of his sin or the gravity of it, but he also does not underestimate God’s ability to completely forgive.

Read this familiar psalm with fresh eyes, and see anew the love of God that calls us to repent and be cleansed.

Scripture for Meditation:

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy, blot out my transgressions.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.
Against you, you alone, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you are justified in your sentence and blameless when you pass judgment.

Indeed, I was born guilty, a sinner when my mother conceived me.
You desire truth in the inward being; therefore teach me wisdom in my secret heart.

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have crushed rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your holy spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain in me a willing spirit.
Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you.

Deliver me from bloodshed, O God, O God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing aloud of your deliverance.
O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.

For you have no delight in sacrifice;
if I were to give a burnt offering, you would not be pleased.

The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
—Psalm 51:1-17 (NRSV)

Song: Clean Heart

Against you and you only have I sinned
In selfishness and pride
I've turned to my desires once again

Against you and you only have I strayed
I've listened to the lies
I’ve left your love and chosen my own way

Have mercy have mercy
Do what only you can do

Create in me a clean heart
Wash me of my sin
Lord pardon my offense
Restore to me the great joy
Of knowing when I stray
My life’s forever tethered to your grace

For the many hurtful things I have done
For choices I have made
For building my own Kingdom my own name

And for the thousand deeds that I have left undone
For failing to forgive
Forgetting to love as you have loved me

Forgive me forgive me
Christ alone is my defense

Create in me a clean heart
Wash me of my sin
Lord pardon my offense
Restore to me the great joy
Of knowing when I stray
My life’s forever tethered to your grace

Have mercy have mercy
Do what only you can do

Create in me a clean heart
Wash me of my sin
Lord pardon my offense
Restore to me the great joy
Of knowing when I stray
My life’s forever tethered to your grace

Craig Swift, Jeffrey Norris, Laura Story

© 2023 Laura's Stories and Songs; Lil Doots Music; Perimeter Church Music Publishing (admin. by Fun Attic Music, LLC ); Perimeter Worship Publishing

Questions for Contemplation:

How do you understand “repentance?” What does it look like for you? What practices, prayers, and Scripture help you understand the call to repent?

Does the message of repentance point to the love of God for you? If not, what voices might be keeping you from seeing it in that way? Spend some time in prayer asking God to expand your understanding of repentance to see it as a response to his love and mercy.

The song for today contains the line “My life’s forever tethered to your grace.” What does that image mean for you? How have you experienced this “tether” in your life through the years? Spend some time offering to God your gratitude for all the ways he has bound you to his grace.

First Sunday of Lent (Sunday, 18 February 2024)

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(please note—versions of songs on the playlist may differ from those used here)

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Words of Reflection

Those who start a Lenten journey might be a little confused if they were to check their calendars and do a little math.

Lent is traditionally thought of as a 40-day season of fasting before Easter. The number makes sense, after all, 40 is very Biblical. It’s the number of days of rain in the Genesis flood, the Hebrews spent 40 years wandering in the desert, Moses fasted for 40 days on Mt. Sinai when receiving the law, and (most significantly for Lent) Jesus went to the wilderness and fasted for 40 days while being tempted. So having a 40-day fast before Easter seems right.

But what doesn’t seem right, at first, is the math. If you look at a calendar and count from Ash Wednesday to the Saturday before Easter, you find that there are actually 46 days in all (in fact, not all church traditions agree on what day Lent ends, making the number different and the confusion even greater). So what’s up with that? How many days is Lent anyway?

Part of the answer to all the confusion lies…in the Sundays.

There are six Sundays in Lent, and while they are part of the Lenten season, they are not considered to be part of the Lenten fast.. In fact, Sundays are traditionally always thought of as “feast days.” Some refer to them as “mini-Easters,” and that’s a very apt phrase. They are the day the church gathers in worship and celebrates the saving grace of God in the proclamation of the Word, the lifting of praise, and the communal sharing in a remembrance of what Christ has done for us. On Sundays we all dwell richly in the story of God’s amazing love, and the joy of the resurrection cannot be completely ignored or else the story would be incomplete. It is perhaps cast in a somewhat different light, as the call of our Lenten journey still beckons to us even on Sundays, but it is there. It reminds us where this journey is going. It helps us remember that God is unfolding a much bigger plan. And it offers us hope.

In these difficult days the message of the “mini-Easters” is needed more than ever. As more than one person has observed, it feels like we’ve been “living Lent” for the past few years. And while it’s still important to set aside time in these 40-ish days to be reminded of our call to take up our cross and follow Christ, perhaps these Sundays take on an even more significant role as we navigate the waters of these stressful days in desperate need of a hopeful word.

As Paul reminds us, hope does not put us to shame. That’s a timely word, not only for a journey to the cross, but for the journey we find ourselves on right now in the midst of so many things that can bring despair. On Sundays during Lent, let’s celebrate a “mini-Easter.” Let’s feast on the glory of God’s redeeming love. Let’s embrace the invitation to hope.

Scripture for Meditation:

Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand, and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. And not only that, but we also boast in our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.
—Romans 5:1-5 (NRSV)

Song: I Set My Hope On Jesus

When this life of trials tests my faith
I set my hope on Jesus
When the questions come and doubts remain
I set my hope on Jesus
For the deepest wounds that time won’t heal
There’s a joy that runs still deeper
There’s a truth that’s more than all I feel
I set my hope on Jesus

I set my hope on Jesus
My rock my only trust
Who set His heart upon me first
I set my hope on Jesus

Though I falter in this war with sin
I set my hope on Jesus
When I fail the fight and sink within
I set my hope on Jesus
Though the shame would drown me in its sea
And I dread the waves of justice
I will cast my life on Calvary
I set my hope on Jesus

I set my hope on Jesus
My rock my only trust
Who set His heart upon me first
I set my hope on Jesus

Though the world calls me to leave my Lord
I set my hope on Jesus
Though it offers all its vain rewards
I set my hope on Jesus
Though this heart of mine is prone to stray
Give me grace enough to finish
Till I worship on that final day
I set my hope on Jesus

I set my hope on Jesus
My rock my only trust
Who set His heart upon me first
I set my hope on Jesus

Keith Getty | Matt Boswell | Matt Papa

© 2023 Getty Music Hymns and Songs; Getty Music Publishing; Love Your Enemies Publishing; Messenger Hymns

Questions for Contemplation:

What are some ways during this Lenten journey that you can mark Sundays as different, as days set apart to dwell in the hope of God shown in the cross and the empty tomb? Are there some Scriptures, prayers, songs, or other intentional practices you can build into these “mini-Easters” as a way of celebrating?

As you seek to dwell in the hope of Christ during these difficult days, what points of connection (to God, to his word, to others) might be helpful for you? What points of connection are already meaningful?

Our song lyrics invite us to set our hope on Jesus, “Who set His heart upon me first.” What does that line mean for you? Spend some time in prayer and gratitude for the love willing to give of itself in that way.

Fourth Day of Lent (Saturday, 17 February 2024)

If you’re new to Lenten Song Reflections, click here to learn about it

Click here to follow the Lenten Song Reflections playlist on Spotify.
(please note—versions of songs on the playlist may differ from those used here)

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Words of Reflection

During our Lenten journey, Saturdays will be somewhat different from the other days of the week. On Saturdays we will sit with an instrumental version of a beloved hymn and take time to ponder the meaning of its lyrics. Only a brief word about the history of the hymn will serve as an introduction, and then after our Scripture reading you are invited to read the lyrics slowly and prayerfully while you listen to the instrumental rendition.

Today’s hymn is based on a poem called “The Pillar of the Cloud” that was written in 1833 by the British theologian John Henry Newman. As a young Anglican priest, Newman was on a tour of the Mediterranean when he was struck down with a horrible fever and was unable to travel for three weeks. He became desperately homesick for England, and when he was finally able to travel it did not go as hoped. The boat on which he had booked passage home became stuck in the Strait of Bonifacio, becalmed and unmoveable for an entire week, and it was during that week that Newman wrote “The Pillar of the Cloud.”

The poem was adapted into the hymn “Lead Kindly Light” about 12 years after it was written, and it quickly became popular in the Church of England. Born of illness, weariness, a longing for home, and a difficult journey, the words speak comfort and strength to those who wrestle with challenges and delays. Though we might be lost for a season, Newman’s words remind us that God’s power, which has never forsaken us, will lead us on and lead us home. These are good words for us to reflect on as we make our way to Jerusalem.

Scripture for Meditation:

Show me your ways, Lord, teach me your paths.

Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.

Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love, for they are from of old.

Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways; according to your love remember me, for you, Lord, are good.
—Psalm 25:4-7 (NRSV)

Song: Lead Kindly Light

Time of Contemplation:

Read through the lyrics of this hymn slowly and prayerfully. Read them more than once, and pay attention to the movement of your soul as you pray. What words or phrases grab your attention? Why? As you finish, sit in prayerful silence before God and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you something of your need and God’s provision that emerges from these words.

Lead kindly Light amid the encircling gloom
Lead Thou me on
The night is dark and I am far from home
Lead Thou me on
Keep Thou my feet I do not ask to see
The distant scene one step enough for me

I was not ever thus nor prayed that Thou
Shouldst lead me on
I loved to choose and see my path but now
Lead Thou me on
I loved the garish day and spite of fears
Pride ruled my will remember not past years

So long Thy power has blest me sure it still
Will lead me on
O'er moor and fen o'er crag and torrent till
The night is gone
And with the morn those angel faces smile
Which I have loved long since and lost awhile

Charles Henry Purday | John Henry Newman

Words: Public Domain; Music: Public Domain

Third Day of Lent (Friday, 16 February 2024)

If you’re new to Lenten Song Reflections, click here to learn about it

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(please note—versions of songs on the playlist may differ from those used here)

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Words of Reflection

There is an old saying, attributed to Jewish tradition, that speaks to times of trial that come before someone is ready to serve God in all fullness:

“The Holy One, blest be His name, does not elevate a man to dignity until he has first tried and searched him; if he stands in temptation then he raises him to dignity.”

In the life of Jesus, this theme is echoed in his 40-day journey into the wilderness after being baptized by John, the 40-days that shape our Lenten calendar:

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.”—Matthew 4:1 (NKJV)

Many people reach this part of the story and want to firmly hit the pause button. Are we really being asked to believe that a loving, benevolent God allows his only Son to be driven into a wilderness where he will be physically weakened and spiritually provoked? That God will permit Jesus to be tested in a way that pushes him to the very limit. Does God really allow that for his children?

The answer, as much as we might not like it, is “yes.”

Think of Abraham being asked to sacrifice his son Isaac, or Joseph being sold into slavery in Egypt, or Daniel serving in the court of Nebuchadnezzar. Think of Naomi and Ruth, widowed and facing an uncertain future. And it’s not just individuals—the Hebrew people face a test of trust after being freed from slavery, and when they fail that test they find themselves wandering in the wilderness for 40 years.

Like the Hebrews, sometimes we find ourselves in barren places because of choices we have made, but even there God is at work. The simple truth is this: God allows wilderness seasons in the lives of his children. But there is an even more important truth: God allows them for a reason, and that reason is grounded in his love and his ultimate desires for us.

For Jesus, the temptation in the wilderness is all about his God-ordained mission. The devil offers him shortcuts, alternate ways to achieve glory and power, but Jesus refuses. He trusts God. He stays true to the path he had been placed on since birth…a path that will ultimately lead to the hill of Calvary and a cruel, Roman cross. Jesus knows that there is no other way but the way of sacrificial love, and when he emerges from the desert he is acutely aware of who he is and what he was sent to do.

That’s what happens in the wilderness, and in that we see why God might allow these moments in our own lives. Wilderness seasons mold us and shape us. They test us by asking us what it is we truly rely on, what it is we really trust. When everything else is gone, when the comforts and consolations are all stripped away, what will we cling to? Will we seek shortcuts, or will we, like Jesus, hold fast to what we know is true about God?

As we follow Jesus to the cross, seeking the way of self-denial, God may call us into difficult places. But take heart. He knows what he is doing. Lent is the way of the wilderness, but this is not bad news.

In God’s purposes it is nothing but joy.

Scripture for Meditation:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead and into an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who are being protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith—being more precious than gold that, though perishable, is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. Although you have not seen him, you love him, and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
—1 Peter 1:3-9 (NRSV)

Song: Wilderness

I could pray for deliverance
I could beg You for greener pastures
I could question why I'm still here
Shake my fist and demand an answer

But right here right now
Is where I start to know You better
So right here I'll stay

‘Cause even in the wilderness
I know I'm not alone
Even in the desert place
Your river overflows
Even in the wasteland
Through the darkest valley there is hope
'Cause even in the wilderness
You won't let go

I could settle for what I want
I could ask for the easy way out
But You've proven You're still good
In the midst of the valley of doubt

You will lead me You will keep me
You will never let me go (REPEAT)

Even in the wilderness
I know I'm not alone
Even in the desert place
Your river overflows
Even in the wasteland
Through the darkest valley there is hope
'Cause even in the wilderness
Even in the wilderness
You won't let go

Anna Byrd | Kyle Lee | Michael Farren

© 2017 Fair Trade Tunes; From The Void; Gateway Create Publishing; Farren Love And War Publishing; Integrity's Alleluia! Music

Questions for Contemplation:

How do we come to know God better in the wilderness? How does that knowledge shape us?

Think about the times in your life you would describe as “wilderness seasons.” If you can see how God was using those times to shape you and build your trust in him, spend some time giving thanks for those gifts. If you still struggle to see where his hand was at work in those times, how might you bring those times to him in prayer? Is there someone else you can invite into that conversation?

Spend some time reflecting on this verse from Isaiah. How does it lead you into prayer, worship, and gratitude?

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”—Isaiah 43:2 (NRSV)

Second Day of Lent (Thursday, 15 February 2024)

If you’re new to Lenten Song Reflections, click here to learn about it

Click here to follow the Lenten Song Reflections playlist on Spotify.
(please note—versions of songs on the playlist may differ from those used here)

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Words of Reflection

The temptation of Jesus comes after his baptism and the declaration from God: “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” (Matt. 3:17, NRSV) Mark even goes so far as to say that this happens “immediately” after Christ’s baptism, implying there might be a connection between the two stories.

And, of course, there is. Both Christ’s baptism and his temptation are fundamentally about his identity as God’s Beloved Son. No sooner had God made the dramatic pronouncement than Jesus finds himself led into the wilderness by the Spirit, where that identity will be put to the test.

“If you are the Son of God,” the enemy begins. The first test is about a basic human need: hunger, which Jesus feels keenly after a long fast. He’s being asked to put on a show, a demonstration of his divine power. But more than that, Jesus is being asked to rely on his miraculous abilities above God’s provision. His trust in his heavenly Father is being challenged, and by extension his identity as the Beloved Son.

Jesus’ reply to the tempter reveals that his trust in God has not, and will not be broken. The child of God will never be forsaken. God provides, and God nourishes in ways beyond human understanding. Christ’s identity is secure, and his reliance on God is steadfast.

As you and I make our Lenten journey, we, too, will face tests and temptations, and many of those will also challenge our identity. While we are not God’s “only Begotten,” Scripture tells us that “…in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith.” (Gal. 3:26, NRSV) But there will be times when we will be tempted to believe otherwise. There will be times when whispered lies tell us we’ve been forsaken, and that we are not the children we thought we were. There will be voices that tell you the only person you can rely on…is yourself.

Don’t believe those voices. Look to Jesus in the wilderness, and more than that—look to Jesus on the cross, the demonstration of both God’s love and God’s provision. Look and remember: the child of God will never be forsaken. God provides, and God nourishes in ways beyond human understanding. Your identity in Christ is secure. You can rely on him.

You are a child of God.

Scripture for Meditation:

For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, “Abba! Father!” it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs: heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if we in fact suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.
—Romans 8:14-17 (NRSV)

Song: Child of God

With ev’ry breath with ev’ry thought
From what is seen to the deepest part
I offer all that I've come to be
To know Your love fathering me

Father You're all I need
My soul's sufficiency
My strength when I am weak
The love that carries me
Your arms enfold me till I am only
A child of God

With ev’ry step on this journey's walk
And wisdom's songs that the soul has sought
I give myself unreservedly
To know Your love fathering me

Kathryn Scott
© 1999 Vineyard Songs (UK/Eire)

Questions for Contemplation:

What does it mean for you to be known as a “child of God?” What strengthens your understanding of that identity? What tempts you to doubt it?

Paul says that our understanding of our identity as God’s children is a work of the Holy Spirit. How have you sensed the Spirit “bearing witness” to you that you are a child of God? How might you find ways to open yourself to that witness more during this Lenten journey?

Even in the wilderness, Jesus found his sufficiency in God alone. In your own wilderness seasons, how has God shown himself trustworthy? How has he shown himself strong when you are weak? How has he carried you? Spend some time in grateful prayer and worship for this powerful way God reminds us we are his children.

Ash Wednesday (14 February 2024)

If you’re new to Lenten Song Reflections, click here to learn about it

Click here to follow the Lenten Song Reflections playlist on Spotify.
(please note—versions of songs on the playlist may differ from those used here)

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Words of Reflection

On Ash Wednesday we begin a journey to the cross.

Not because we deserve it. Not because we’ve earned it.

Because we’re invited.

God’s astounding grace calls to us in the midst of our brokenness and says, “Come.”

The season of Lent is not a time of self-improvement or habit-crushing. It’s not a time when we try to “do better” and somehow inch a bit more towards perfection. Lent is a season of brutal honesty about the state of our souls. It’s a journey to the cross of Christ, where all pretense and posturing fail. Lent is a time when we acknowledge our deepest, most profound need: forgiveness. We are fallen, broken people who need a Savior, and during Lent we embrace the invitation to repentance.

What a beautiful truth it is that God does not expect us to “clean up our act” before coming to him. He knows what burdens us, what binds us, what imprisons us. The freedom we so desperately seek is available to us if we will simply acknowledge the truths about ourselves he already knows completely.

This year during the Lenten Song Reflections we will be focusing on a different seasonal theme each week. For these few days between Ash Wednesday and the First Sunday of Lent we are going to sit with the biblical story that serves as the foundation of Lent—the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. In this story we are reminded that Jesus identifies with us, that he has faced temptation and knows our struggles. There is no part of our journey where Jesus is not alongside us, aware of what we face and aware of what we need.

May this story shape us as it shapes the season.

Scripture for Meditation:

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tested by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over he was famished. The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.” Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’”

Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And the devil said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” Jesus answered him, “It is written,‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”

Then the devil led him to Jerusalem and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’”

Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’” When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.
—Luke 4:1-13 (NRSV)

Song: Lord Who Throughout These Forty Days

Lord, who throughout these forty days
For us did fast and pray,
Teach us with you to mourn our sins,
And close by You to stay.

As You with Satan did contend
And did the vict'ry win,
O give us strength in You to fight,
In You to conquer sin.

As You did hunger and did thirst,
So teach us, gracious Lord,
To die to self, and so to live
By Your most holy word.

And through these days of penitence,
And through Your Passion-tide,
Forevermore, in life and death,
O Lord, with us abide.

Abide with us, that through this life
Of doubts and hope and pain,
An Easter of unending joy
We may at last attain.

Claudia Frances Ibotson Hernaman
Words: Public Domain; Music: Public Domain

Questions for Contemplation:

As you begin your Lenten journey, how are you inviting Jesus, who knows you best and loves you most, to journey with you? What practices and disciplines will help shape your journey?

What does it mean for you to know that Jesus identifies with us in our weakness and our temptations? How does that re-frame your understanding of your own spiritual journey so far? Moving forward?

Spend some time meditating on these words from the hymn. They reflect the invitation of Ash Wednesday to consider ourselves “dead to sin and alive in Christ.” Ask God to root this prayer deeply in your soul during this season of Lent:

As You did hunger and did thirst,
So teach us, gracious Lord,
To die to self, and so to live
By Your most holy word.

Lenten Song Reflections 2024

Music and Thoughts for Your Lenten Journey

Welcome to Lenten Song Reflections, a daily resource for your Lenten Journey from Abiding Way Ministries. Each day during Lent you will find a short reflection here based on a worship song, hymn, or other piece of music that echoes the themes of this season. It is our prayer that this resource will draw you into deep appreciation and worshipful gratitude for the sacrifice of Jesus as you reflect on the meaning of the cross over these 40 days.

Lent is a time of self-examination, humility, and repentance. Each of the songs offered will center on these invitations, and will be accompanied by a few thoughts and questions for refection. Use these in your personal devotions, or perhaps listen together with family members or friends, spending time in conversation afterwards.

Each song will be linked to an online opportunity to listen, and will be embedded in the post if possible. Due to the policies of some streaming sites, the song may be preceded by an advertisement, which is unfortunately out of our control. You may wish to mute the advertisement and sit in silence until the song begins.

You can also find the songs in our Lenten Song Reflections 2024 playlist on Spotify by clicking here. The songs will be added each day as the devotional continues. (Please note—due to song availability limitations the versions of songs used in the Spotify playlist may differ from those used in the devotionals)

God bless you as you draw near to him during this important season.