My last blog for 40 days

I do not come from a church or family background that has celebrated Lent. In fact, I knew little to nothing about it until about 5 years ago when I moved to northwest Ohio and saw kids coming to school on Ash Wednesday with a black ash cross on their foreheads. I gathered a bit more information from asking my friends about it and hearing what they were giving up. Yet it always felt like a ritual to me, mainly because I did not understand the purpose and had not been raised with the observance. And so, I never gave anything up for forty days.

Until this year. I went to my first Ash Wednesday service this morning on campus and finally got a good explanation for the observation of Lent. Ashes in the Bible represent remorse for personal sin and the recognition of the need to be cleansed on the inside. It is also used to represent the mortality of our lives and how we are nothing more than dust and ashes. In preparing to celebrate Christ's death and resurrection, some Christians humble themselves and recognize their position as sinners who are no more than ashes.

The giving up of something or working intensely on a sin in theirs lives is an act of service to God. It is both an attempt to be cleansed of sin and a recognition that all that we have and do belongs to God. My brother said it so well the other day when he decided to give up something he loves, for more than just 40 days. "I have told God before," he said "that He comes first, even over basketball. Now I get to show Him that I mean that by giving up playing [in college]."

So, with this conversation in mind and the service this morning, I have decided to observe Lent for the first time in my life. I am giving up any unnecessary usage of the internet. Why? Because I know I spent too much time online. It is my default time filler. And I want to replace that time with reading and studying the Bible as well as building relationships with other staff here.

Therefore, this is my last blog for 40 days. I will certainly give an update on Easter. For those of you whom I know and usually communicate with electronically, I will not be using my screen name, but still checking my email. Feel free to ask questions about my decision or hold me accountable.