Lent 2024: ‘The Rest is Worship’
This year during Lent we will be using the Engage Worship resource ‘The Rest is Worship.’
So often in our Christian lives we focus on ‘doing.’ It may be some of the myriad activities associated with church life, or helping in the community, or supporting a charity, or demands of work or childcare (including grandchild-care) or looking after older relatives. The list seems endless. There are so many claims on our time that it is difficult to stop and just ‘be.’
Yet that is the invitation which Jesus extends to all who would follow him: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” (Matt. 11:28).
Doesn’t that sound wonderful?!
But, I hear you ask, what about all those ‘jobs’ – don’t they still need doing? Well, yes, they do and they will get done but none of us can run on empty and that applies to our spiritual selves just as much as – if not more so – than any other aspect of our lives.
Remember Jesus visiting the home of Martha and Mary?
Martha had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”
“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10: 38 – 42)
So this Lent, we are invited to discover for ourselves that rest can be worship too.
Our services during this time will follow the weekly themes as will our Lent study. We will hold that on a Tuesday evening by Zoom* and you are warmly invited to join us, whether you usually do or not. We begin at 7.45pm with a brief time of prayer and then explore the study, finishing by 9pm at the latest.
To give you a flavour, these are the weekly themes:
Week 1 The God who rests Tuesday 20th Feb
Week 2 Jesus’ invitation to rest Tuesday 27th Feb
Week 3 Putting aside distractions Tuesday 5th March
Week 4 Silence and stillness Tuesday 12th March
Week 5 Simple prayer NO Tues meeting so please join alternative group
Week 6 Resisting the powers Tuesday 26th March
To accompany this Lenten journey there is a 40-day devotional – which will inform our study but can also be used for personal devotions. I have obtained a group licence and can let you have a pdf for free or, if you need it in printed format, there is a cost of £5 to cover printing/paper.
*If Tuesdays aren’t a good evening for you there are two other Lent groups: Thursday evening 7.30pm or Wednesday afternoon 2.30pm. Same Zoom link which appears in our weekly notices.