We're about to start a 46 day journey. 

Today, Ash Wednesday, marks the beginning of Lent. We tend to talk about Lent being 40 days but if you take a look at a calendar, you'll notice that Easter is 46 days away. The answer is that Sundays during Lent don't "count." Sundays are always reserved as holy days where we celebrate Jesus risen from the tomb. Sundays are always days of joy and abundance, where we proclaim God's overflowing love for us and the world, and our need for God's grace in our lives. Each week of Lent, then, is six days of pilgrimage towards the joy of the seventh day.

And that journey towards God is the point of Lent. I like that Sundays break up our forty day period. We're reminded, over and over again, that we are a people who are loved by God and that such proclamation, and love, is a joyous thing. Lent isn't just a time to be hard on ourselves. Nor is Lent a time when we give up something we enjoy to just feel miserable and post about it on Facebook. Lent is about that journey to God - that journey to Sunday. It's about being intentional and recognizing our need for God in our lives. It's about knowing that our life is a journey to God and with God. It's about taking the time to see God's presence in our lives and to celebrate God's love for us in abundant ways. 

This Lent, I invite you to take on a practice that will help support your journey with God. Read the Gospel of Mark, a book our Confirmands are reading right now. Pick up a series of Lenten devotions called "Grace and Peace" and spend 10 minutes every morning reading and praying with them. Make a commitment to visit church every Sunday, checking in on social media, and letting your friends know that you are being fed here. Come, let's celebrate our journey to God and see, in Christ, God's journey to us.