HOUSTON MENNONITE CHURCH

Lent 2010:Holding On- Letting Go

What do you need to let go of?  

Our theme for Lent 2010, which kicked off with the celebration of Ash Wednesday, is HOLDING ON- LETTING GO. This allows us to ask ourselves the tough but necessary question, what are we clinging to that we need to let go of? A painful memory, bitterness, a certain self image, financial resources, spiritual or physical clutter, etc… Lent encourages us to do the inner work necessary to let go, or as one of our members recently said in a newsletter article, to de-clutter our lives. But it takes us the next step as well, and invites us to hold on to that which is most dear to us. As my wife says about practices that invite you to let something go (like fasting, a traditional Lenten practice), it frees you to have the time for something else, perhaps something more valuable: scripture, God, others, yourself, missions.

The story of Jesus is the story of letting go and holding on. We see Jesus letting go of expectations, and holding dearly to his God, even to the point of death. Jesus renounces violence, leadership defined as power over people, oppression, etc… With each new gospel story we see Jesus cling to his image of the Kingdom of God come into our midst. Ultimately as Christians we are called to this same kind of love- a love that has no end.

Lent is an intentional 40 day period where we enter the story of Jesus with the goal of transforming not just those 40 days, but every day. Whatever practices you adopt to help you let go or hold on to something this Lent, the ultimate goal is not to prove your willpower over 40 days. No! As June Meirs-Dreidger says, it is to be transformed to be like Jesus. In other words, the point of practices of letting go and holding on is ultimately to change our world. To be the kind of people we want to be, and to be the kind of church we feel called to become, we will have to do more than commit to it. We will have to adopt practices that train us to be the type of people we want to be. So for the next 40 days, consider letting something go (fasting), or holding on to something (scripture, see below). May this Lenten journey be an opportunity for new beginnings, as you let go, and hold on!

HMC Lenten Schedule

►Learning Christ by reading and/or listening to the New Testament. Mp3 copies of the NT are available the next several Sundays in English and Spanish, children’s and adult.
►Wednesday Nights: The Journey A mid-week small group gathering to share life, prayer, and reflect on Lenten scripture texts. 7PM Wednesdays at Houston Mennonite Church, beginning February 24th. Pack your Bible and perhaps a journal. Travel companions provided. Why stumble alone when you can walk together? Come share the Journey! ‘Come to me, all who are weary and in need of rest.’ Jesus
►Maunday Thursday: Thursday April 1, 6:30-8PM.
►Good Friday: Friday April 2, 7PM Tennebrae Service of Shadows.
►Easter: Sunday April 4. 

Lenten Practices

You are encouraged to either pick up or let go of something this Lenten season, as a spiritual symbol of your walk with God. Check out the worship tab of our website for suggestions, or consider joining us for this collective practice:
Read and/or listen to the New Testament. We invite you to “work out” your faith this Lenten season by listening to or reading the entire New Testament through the 40 days of Lent. Mp3 copies of the NT will be available the next several Sundays, for those who want to listen. Bible Reading guides will be available for those who want to read (also below). Of course, you can do a bit of both. The January 10^th sermon talked about “making the impossible possible” by training ourselves to practice what we want to become. Make sure to pick up your copy of the NT on CD this Sunday: available in English, Spanish, adult and children’s.

To download free copies of the New Testament in various translations, languages, and drama or non-drama formats, check out: http://www.faithcomesbyhearing.com/ambassador/free-audio-bible-download 

To purchase a $29 listening device called a “Bible Stick” see http://www.faithcomesbyhearing.com/store/languageconfig 

40 DAY BIBLE READING PLAN

Day 1 – Matt. 1-7
Day 2 – Matt. 8-12
Day 3 – Matt. 13-18
Day 4 – Matt. 19-24
Day 5 – Matt. 25-28
Day 6 – Mark 1-6
Day 7 – Mark 7-11
Day 8 – Mark 12-16
Day 9 – Luke 1-4
Day 10 – Luke 5-9
Day 11 – Luke 10-13
Day 12 – Luke 14-19
Day 13 – Luke 20-24
Day 14 – John 1-5
Day 15 – John 6-9
Day 16 – John 10-14
Day 17 – John 15-19
Day 18 – John 20-Acts 4
Day 19 – Acts 5-9
Day 20 – Acts 10-15
Day 21 – Acts 16-20
Day 22 – Acts 21-26
Day 23 – Acts 27-Rom. 4
Day 24 – Rom. 5-10
Day 25 – Rom. 11-I Cor. 1
Day 26 – I Cor. 2-9
Day 27 – I Cor. 10-15
Day 28 – I Cor. 16-II Cor. 9
Day 29 – II Cor. 10-Gal. 4
Day 30 – Gal. 5-Phil. 1
Day 31 – Phil. 2-I Thes. 2
Day 32 – I Thes. 3-I Tim. 5
Day 33 – I Tim. 6-Heb. 1
Day 34 – Heb. 2-10
Day 35 – Heb. 11-James 5
Day 36 – I Pet. 1-I John 1
Day 37 – I John 2-Jude
Day 38 – Rev. 1-7
Day 39 – Rev. 8-15
Day 40 – Rev. 16-22

Ways of Celebrating Lent
There are as many ways to celebrate Lent as there are people who want to get closer to Jesus. Find some practices that are meaningful for you. You might want to consider adopting one or more practices for the entire Lenten season.

• ·         Corporate worship: join us or another congregation for weekly worship. We meet Sunday mornings at 10:45AM, and everyone is welcome to join us!
• ·         Let something go: Christians have for centuries and still do practice fasting. Fasting is cutting out a normal part of your daily life for the sake of spiritual growth and learning. Consider fasting for several meals each week, or a particular type of food (such as chocolate, or meat). Or, consider fasting from a non-food item such as the Internet, or TV, or gasoline, or anything that is blocking you from wholeness.
• ·         Pick something up: Instead of cutting back on something, think about something you could add to your normal schedule for the sake of spiritual growth and learning. Consider scripture reading, prayer, walking more, exorcize, writing personal notes, journaling, etc…
• ·         Special Projects: I know people who have found it meaningful to undertake a special project for Lent as a way of sharing Christ’s love. Perhaps this would be a good time to put your hobby to use for others (many at HMC do this regularly!), or to save your pennies for Mennonite Central Committee, or take on a needed project around the church or neighborhood.

My prayer is that whatever you decide to do, or don’t do, will draw you closer to Jesus as a committed follower of his way of life. May you know that being in Jesus universe is the safest place for you to be! It’s the only way the world makes sense.