Happy Pi day!

The Discipline of Lent

I was never familiar with the Christian discipline of Lent. I guess I would have said that Lent is too traditional; it’s something more commonly observed by Catholics or “conservative” Christians, much in the same way Muslims celebrate Ramadan.

So how come I decided to observe Lent this year? Well, a guy in my small group brought up the idea of Lent. He said he was going to reduce the time he spent watching TV and to use that time for something more productive. I thought for some time and said, “Yeah, I think I spend too much time playing computer games.” It then occurred to me that I should take the 40 day challenge, something that I’ve never done in my entire life since age 7: I would go completely without computer games.

If you want to get technical, my decision should also involve video games, but since I do not own a console, I decided to let that slide. After all, ever since the SNES went out of date, I haven’t been big on console games, and any time I had access to a console game, it was in the presence of many people. So I admit, I did play a little Guitar Hero and Wii tennis in the last 2 weeks, but these games were for the purpose of IRL socializing (and not so much IG socializing), which was part of the reason why I wanted to fast from computer games in the first place.

2 weeks have elapsed. I have not survived 2 weeks without games since sophomore year in college. There were times when I really did think, “I’m sooooooooooooooo tired. One little game wouldn’t hurt. After all, observing Lent was my own free choice. It’s not that God commands me to observe Lent; breaking it is not a sin.” I even started to think of Lent as a legalistic practice–and since I am under grace and not under the “law” anymore, I do not need to do my best to observe Lent. As long as I understand the “spirit of Lent” (i.e. to not let gaming control my time), then I have fulfilled the practice of Lent.

Well, that is true. Lent is a discipline, not a law; and not following Lent is not a sin. In fact, many Christians have different views regarding Lent. I am part of the community that does not believe Lent to be something that a “devout” Christian needs to observe. Besides, you could pick any time of the year to fast from something, and you could pick any amount of time, based on your convictions. Personally, I think it would be even more useful to fast for a year from something that is more dangerous–like say, staring at hot girls that may cause you to stumble–than fasting for 40 days from gaming. However, by starting with something more manageable, I can say that this discipline (not law) has helped me better understand the meaning of Lent.

So what is the meaning of Lent?

Observing Lent is meant to symbolize self denial, in the way Jesus resisted temptation in the desert for 40 days. But moreover, it can be seen as an imitation of Christ’s sacrifice of love (Ephesians 5:1-2). This is not to say that those who perform extra acts of kindness during Lent, such as feeding the poor or helping people in need, are necessarily better people. However, I’ve realized that this act of self-denial has enabled me to give my extra time to doing good things I would never have imagined doing. If I had not freed my mind and my time from computer games, I would have missed out on some great blessings.

For example, I spent the extra 20 hours that I freed up last week to prepare a formal presentation of my own testimony/life story, and this was the first time I had ever organized the events in my life coherently and reflected on God’s presence and workings throughout my life. In fact, after the first 18 hours of preparation, I had a bunch of slides filled with facts about my life, but they also included some random emotional stuff and bitter thoughts. It wasn’t bad, but after showing it to my friend, he told me that it definitely had a little too much of the angry ME in it. Yes, my testimony is about me, but more importantly, it is about God working in my life. I could make subtle complaints about some stuff that I went through in college, or about this or that, but in reality when I look back, God has protected me and saved me from a lot of things, even if it involved putting me through suffering and hardship. Had these things not happened, I would not have known God; I would not have understood His goodness, His power, and His amazing love. My testimony was more powerful than I had previously imagined, not only to those who heard it last week, but to myself as well; it really was an amazing 10 years through which I came to know God.

My testimony presentation also gave me time to reflect on what God has been trying to communicate to me in recent times. I’ve never considered myself a leader; I’ve often felt too fearful and timid to be one. But after last Friday, I was very clear on God’s purpose for my life within the next year. I needed to grow up. I needed to stop being controlled by emotions such as fear, bitterness, or depression. I needed to trust in Him more, because after all, my life is in His hands. Remember Matthew 6. What is the use of worrying about my life when I can’t add a single hour to it? Seek His kingdom first and all shall be added.

In conclusion, fasting from gaming has been a sketch of the greater “fasting from selfish living.” After all, if I had chosen to to follow the worldly desires of my own heart, I would have been out working and making money long ago, and would have spent my free time exploring music, playing games, and dating/finding a wife (ok, now I’m just fantasizing ). I would have chosen a much easier life than the research I am doing now. But what is it for me to gain the world yet forfeit God’s calling for me? (There is a reason why I say this, but it wouldn’t make sense unless you’ve heard my testimony. ) I know that to love God and to trust in Him is far more important than gaining gold, fame, pride, or respect in this world. Yet the act of submission to God, and the pursuit of holiness and purity, are far more difficult than even the act of giving up computer gaming. I was able to narrowly escape from gaming 3 times in the last 2 weeks, but I can say I’ve stumbled way more often when it came to trusting and obeying God.

Anyways, just thought I’d share this to encourage Christians to prayerfully consider taking on the challenge of Lent. I almost gave up 2 days into it because I started off taking it lightly, but a friend encouraged me to pray seriously about it. And as a result, God has definitely blessed me through it.