DAY 1: THAT I MAY KNOW JESUS
“That I may know Jesus and the power of His resurrection,
and the fellowship of His sufferings.” Philippians 3:10
Dear Friends,
What was the faith of your childhood? Did you go to the kind of church that celebrated Ash Wednesday and imposed ashes on your forehead to begin a season called Lent? Did you go to the kind of church that had you wondering about all those ashy headed people? Were you raised with faith awareness at all? Do you know Jesus today?
As children we went to church where Lent (the 40 days before Easter) began with ashes applied to our heads in the sign of the cross. While we don’t have that tradition at Crossroads, we do want to make space for those of you who are looking for ways to know Jesus these next 40 days that include the commemoration of his death, burial and resurrection.
Originally Lent was a time of preparation for those who were to be baptized, a time of concentrated study and prayer before their baptism on Easter Sunday. Since these new members were joining the community of faith, the entire church was called to preparation. Fasting and giving things up to prepare for the celebration of Resurrection Sunday was a part of this journey called Lent. Also, this was the time when those who had been away from God would prepare to return. In the early church, on Ash Wednesday, ashes were used to mark the forehead of people who had made public confession of sin and were returning to the church. Later, the imposition of ashes was extended to everyone because “all have sinned” and everyone is called to return to God.
Friends, we are anticipating this season to be a season of knowing God which results in new life at Crossroads. We will be preparing for that new life over the next 40 days in a few distinct ways. We invite you to join us.
- Wednesday Prayer. Join our staff for Midday Prayer on Wednesday 11:30-12:00pm at the prayer wall in the auditorium. Enter in silence, pray the great prayers of our faith, confession, repentance and salvation from the scriptures, and then leave in silence, listening to God’s voice.
- Weekly Fasting: Tuesday evening at sundown to Wednesday evening at sundown. We will be fasting and praying for the miracle of knowing God for our friends and family. Prayers will be offered for Resurrection miracles in our community.
- Join our blog. We will be blogging throughout the next 40 days offering ways to know Jesus leading up to Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday.
Preparing to know Him more,
Scott and Clare