Lent 2022
Lent Fasting Prayer Points
Join us as we fast and pray on Thursdays.
March 10 Prayer Points | March 17 Prayer Points | March 24 Prayer Points | March 31 Prayer Points | April 7 Prayer Points | April 14 Prayer Points
What is Lent?
Lent is one of the oldest observances on the Christian calendar. Like all Christian holy days and seasons, it has changed over the years, but its purpose has always been the same: self-examination and repentance in preparation for Easter. Historically, the three pillars of Lent have been fasting, prayer, and generosity. This Lenten season we are choosing to focus our attention primarily on prayer and fasting (while not neglecting generosity!)
The Lord’s Prayer
When Jesus’ disciples asked Him how they ought to pray, Jesus responded with words that would become cherished by generations of Christians over the past 2,000 years. More than a mere mantra to be mindlessly repeated, the Lord’s Prayer gives us a glimpse into the desires of God’s own heart. Each phrase of this prayer is layered with meaning and beauty and is meant to guide not only our words but also our desires…toward his kingdom and his honor. In a grace-filled effort to deepen our prayer life as a church, we will focus the content of this devotional resource on each phrase of the “Lord’s Prayer” throughout the 40 days of Lent.
Lent resources
The Good of Giving Up by Aaron Damiani
This book describes the goodness of lent and explains how lent can reform our habits and convictions
The Lent Episode from the In-Between Podcast
Lent is sometimes referred to as a season of bright sadness. Lent is the forty-day period mirroring Jesus’ forty days in the wilderness and prepares us to enter the suffering of Good Friday and celebrate the cosmos-altering triumph of Easter. In this episode, we explore the Lenten practices of giving up and taking up, the trickiness of fasting, and how to do Lent with kids.
FASTING
In Lent, we fast by freely giving up food or other good things to make space in our hearts for greater dependence on Christ and to make space in our pocketbooks and calendars for greater generosity to others.
Wednesday Fasting
One way we can do that corporately this year is through our Wednesday fasting and prayer. Each Wednesday, beginning February 24 and lasting through March 31, we invite you to fast for 24 hours and to join us at the church office (1508 JFK Blvd) from noon to 1 on Wednesdays for a time of prayer.
PRAYER
In Lent, we pray as we come to Him and acknowledge that He is the true satisfaction, the true bread of life we were created to feast upon.
Prayer at Gospel Communities
For the weeks of March 8 and March 15, Gospel Communities are encouraged to spend a large portion of their time together in prayer, using the Gospel Community Questions’ prayer points. We hope this time deepens our dependence on God as a church body.
Prayer Resources
Sermon: Habits of Grace | Prayer
The Songs of Jesus: A Year of Daily Devotions in the Psalms.
Monday Night Prayer
Join us the first Monday of each month at the First City Offices to pray for one another, for our church, and the city. Monday night prayer is an opportunity to pray in community and to learn how to pray. 8pm to 9pm.
Generosity
In Lent, we give generously as we follow Christ’s path of sacrificial love and service to the “least of these.”
Socks for Bellevue Together
As a way of practicing generosity as a church, we ask everyone to bring at least one package of new socks to donate to Bellevue Together to church on March 29. Bellevue Together is an organization we partner with to serve public school students in Bellevue with material needs. Donating clothing is one way we can serve the needy in the city we live in.