[00:00:46] First Reading - Deuteronomy 26:1-11
[00:03:34] Second Reading - Romans 10:8b-13
[00:04:40] Gospel Reading - Luke 4:1-13
[00:06:30] Sermon - Rev. Chris Roth
[00:25:13] Blessing and Dismissal
Questions for reflection on Deuteronomy 26:1-11
- Why do the people need to continuously be reminded of the events of the past?
- Do you find it easy to be thankful? Do you think being thankful is taught in our culture?
- Why do the people give in the response to God’s blessing?
- When you think back into your past do you think mostly of things you are thankful for?
Disciple Steps - Lent
Ask yourself, in light of what Christ has done for me:
- What have I done for Christ?
- What am I doing for Christ?
- What ought I do for Christ?
What is Lent?
“Lent” comes from the Anglo-Saxon word for spring, when the days lengthen. The season of Lent finds its origins in the practice of early converts to Christianity spending time (often 3 years) in preparation for baptism at Easter. In the early church this was a radical commitment because conversion could mean torture or death in a time of persecution. They wanted to be sure that the faith they were being baptized into was worth risking their lives for. The weeks before Easter became an especially intense time of prayer, fasting, study, and renunciation of sin, in preparation for their new lives as Christians. In modern times Lent has become a time of renewed commitment and self-discipline. Many give up certain foods and luxuries in remembrance of how much Christ gave up for us. Many also dedicate more time to prayer, study, or acts of charity and generosity. It is a time of spiritual spring cleaning. “Lent is the period in which, learning to abstain from adoring at the shrine of the self, we come to see beyond the divinity we have made of ourselves to the divine will for all the world.”
–Joan Chittister
