LINKS FOR LENT

by Karen

Today is Ash Wednesday – the day that marks the beginning of the season of Lent. You can find a lot of great resources online to help you with Lenten practices at home or at church. Here are a few:

1. The ELCA website is a great place to start. On this page the principle themes of Lent are outlined. There is a brief history concerning the season of Lent as well. Towards the bottom of the page, there are some great ideas for living out this season at home.  Here are a couple of ideas you will find there :

• Commit to a Lenten discipline of devotion, prayer and service.
• Teach children to make the sign of the cross offering them a way to bodily participate in the liturgy at church and prayers at home.
• Find ways to include children in ministries of service during Lent. Collect offerings or food stuffs for those in need. Create a way to track the progress in a way that will engage children.
• Concentrate on prayer during Lent. Collect prayer requests, write them on slips of paper and fashion them into a paper chain collect them in a bowl as a tangible reminder of the prayers.

2. Augsburg Fortress has resources for children and adults. Check out their website for more information.

3. I know I’ve mentioned this before, but in case you missed it, there is a wonderful little devotional site online that youth might find helpful. Adults may appreciate this site, too. During the season of Lent, the site is called “Journey to the Cross.” Each day starts with a question to help you start to focus on the devotion. Then there is a Bible passage for reflection. Then there is a reflection offered by one of the writers. The fourth link is a prayer and the final link is a blessing. While you read through these reflections, meditative music is being played in the background.

4. Are you looking for something to read – and discuss during Lent? One of my favorite books is “Practicing Our Faith: A Way of Life for a Searching People.” Twelve different practices are described here: Honoring the Body, Hospitality, Household Economics, Saying Yes and Saying No, Keeping Sabbath, Testimony, Discernment, Shaping Communities, Forgiveness, Healing, Dying Well, and Singing for Our Lives. There are additional resources online related to each of these practices. Check them out! Settle into one of these practices during this season of Lent and see where the journey takes you!

5. If you haven’t discovered the Northeastern PA Synod’s Resource Center yet, here’s your link to check it out! In the advanced search you can find a variety of Lenten resources – from booklets and kits to videos and DVDs.

God be with you on your Lenten journey!

[Via http://nepsyouthfamily.wordpress.com]