Let's Talk About Lent

When I was a kid, I don’t really remember learning much about Lent at church. There may have been a light liturgy read on the Sundays of Lent, but it doesn’t register in my mind’s eye. I was a church kid, and I don’t remember learning what Lent was actually about.

Kind of weird, right? I mean, I knew that people gave up things for Lent. I learned that from popular culture, and the few Catholic kids who happened to go to my school. They didn’t know what Lent was really about either, but they gave up things like chocolate for 40 days.

That was it—you give something up for Lent. But why? What did giving up chocolate have to do with God? Didn’t He want us to live an abundant life? I was confused.

As I got older, I started to dig deeper. What was Lent really about? Here’s what I found...

What does 'Lent' mean anyway?

Lent is a shortened form of an old English word, 'lencten', which meant 'spring season.'

Why 40 days?

Well, if you’ve read the Bible, you’ll know that 40 days is a very frequently occurring amount of time.

How long did it rain in Noah’s season on the ark? 40 days and 40 nights. How long was Moses on Mount Sinai? 40 days and 40 nights. How long did Elijah fast after fleeing from Jezebel? 40 days and 40 nights.

But then Jesus is on the scene, and after he’s baptized, he goes into the wilderness for how long? 40 days and 40 nights. As Jesus fasts, he faces Satan’s tempting. It is this 40-day period that sets the rationale for our practice of Lent.

As such, Lent is the 40 days leading up to Easter. That said, various denominations have slightly different practices with how they calculate those days. Many start on Ash Wednesday and end on Holy Saturday. If you were to count each day, you’d realize that is actually 46 days; however, the practice discounts the Sundays – 6 of them – arriving at 40 days. Other denominations or traditions, begin on Ash Wednesday and end on Holy Thursday. Some have extended fasting for up to 55 days! All that to say, “Lent” doesn’t have a completely set 40 days for all Christians.

When did Christians first begin this practice?

Well, the truth is, many scholars believe that the practice of Lent began within the first century, however, the mass practice of Lent became embedded in the Church during the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D.

What did early Christians do during Lent?

In the first few hundred years, early Christians held fairly strict fasting rules with one meal each day after 3pm, however, it could not have meat, fish, or dairy. Then, a few hundred years in, around the year 800, Christians relaxed the rules somewhat and began to add another small meal. As time went on, more of this loosened to the point that simply giving up something for Lent seemed to suffice.

Why doesn't my church observe fasting during Lent?

Maybe they do. Neat! But chances are your church doesn’t really hold to the practice of fasting (at least from something) for 40 days. Why? The reality is that during the Reformation, many of the reformers believed that fasting for 40 days felt too much like a work-based salvation practice instead of simply receiving our salvation by grace through faith. Thus, the practice of Lent was mostly phased out by Protestants.

What now?

Like any spiritual practice, we need to consider Lent with the right heart posture. Do I feel God nudging me to give up something for Lent to strengthen my dependance on Him? If you prayerfully consider this, follow the Spirit’s nudge.

Or, am I choosing to participate for the sake of appearances rather than genuine spiritual growth? Do you just want to have an answer when asked at a social engagement, 'What have you given up for Lent?'

Sometimes, we choose to participate in these sorts of things for the wrong reason. God sees our hearts and knows our motives. Let’s invite His Spirit to guide us so our Lenten practice draws us closer to Him.

I realize that this has all been informative, but probably way too much to attempt to explain to kids. So, how do we frame all this well? Here’s a quick-kid-script that you could adjust for age-honouring purposes:

Lent is the 40 days leading up to Easter. You might wonder why 40 days? In the Bible, we learn that after Jesus was baptized, he went to the wilderness where he fasted (he didn’t eat) for 40 days all the while being tempted by the devil. But don’t worry! Jesus never sinned!

Now, to do some ‘extra-focus on Jesus,’ many Christians around the world choose to do special things during those 40 days before Easter.

What kinds of things? Well, some choose to fast – that means going without something, usually food, for that time. But fasting isn’t always about food. Some people choose to fast from technology or an activity that takes up too much time, so that they can focus that time on praying and reading the Bible more. Some people also choose to give more during Lent. That could be money that they give to the church or to the poor or giving of their time to help serve the church or serve the poor.

Lent is all about preparing our hearts to remember Jesus’ death on the cross and his coming back from the dead – we call that resurrection – to show that he saved us from our sins, and he defeated death!

So, what might you do with the kids and young people in your life during Lent? Here are a few possibilities to help their hearts cultivate the spiritual practice:

1. Prayer jar: Write names or topics to pray for each day. Choose an item each time you sit for a meal and pray about it.

2. Do one intentional act of kindness per day: Think about it in advance, pray about it, and then do it.

3. Giving box: Collect money or items for those in need. Use the 40 days to get kids exciting about giving what they can!

4. Try a fast: Give up something (like complaining, soda, or YouTube) and replace it with something good.

Remember, Lent isn’t about rules. It’s about our love and focus on Jesus. Remind kids that Lent isn’t just about giving things up; it’s about growing closer to Jesus.