What is Lent? And how is ministry a burden?

Last Sunday, I advertised a new ministry initiative that I said will hopefully “place this burden of ministry on the shoulders” of our young adults. A good lady later asked me if she heard me correctly, because she wasn’t sure why I referred to ministry as a burden. That is a great question!
For people who are mature in their faith, ministry doesn’t feel burdensome. Mature disciples long ago learned that to follow Jesus means we give things up along the way and make sacrifices for the good of others. They’ve also developed a radical worldview which places a higher priority on future blessings than current troubles. Ministry, then, is experienced as a joy, because those disciples know that they are walking in fellowship with Christ.
It was Christ, however, who never shied away from telling potential disciples that the path of discipleship is difficult. In Luke 14:25-33, Jesus teaches about the sacrifices required to truly follow him. In verse 27 he said, “Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.” The Master’s call to ministry included quite a burden.
Jesus wasn’t necessarily calling all of us to crucifixion, but he was calling us to a cruciform life—a life lived based on a willingness to give up everything for the cause. His own passion is meant to form the purpose and direction of our lives.
We will all be required to give up many things in order to become more like Jesus. The more we practice sacrifice and self-denial, the faster we will come to experience ministry as a blessing rather than a burden. Bottom line: ministry means we must give things up to live like Jesus, which brings me to Lent….
I grew up in Churches of Christ, which don’t typically talk about Lent, so Lent isn’t something I ever really understood until a few years ago. Lent is a tradition usually observed by Catholics, “mainline” Protestants, and Eastern Orthodox Christians that emphasizes giving something up for the 40 days (plus Sundays) prior to Easter in order to focus on the suffering of Christ. Eastern Orthodox Christians count the days differently, but Catholics and others begin Lent today with what they call “Ash Wednesday.” Anyone with access to Google can find plenty of digestible information about all these things. Here’s why I even bring it up:
1) It’s relevant to what’s going on in the broader religious world around us.
2) It directly connects with my point about taking on a new ministry which you may initially experience as a burden, especially if you didn’t seek it out on your own.
3) Lent embodies a worthwhile attitude and effort to sacrifice and focus on Jesus.
Don’t misunderstand; I’m not telling you that we should practice Lent, per se. I know some of us have an aversion to doing things other religious groups do, because we want to be distinct. That’s not an important motivation or concern I have. I’d rather find areas to stand in unison. But that’s a bit beside the point here, because the broad principles of Lent should already be a part of our lives.
If sacrifice and a focus on Christ isn’t a part of our daily living, then we should re-evaluate our discipleship. The principles of Lent should be a part of life all the year long. If that means we need to specify a time of year when that receives special attention and focus, then that’s not such a bad thing.
So, think about something you can sacrifice today in order to focus more on Jesus. The more you do this, the more you’ll come to experience ministry as a blessing rather than a burden.
— Patrick