Joy in the Waiting
Lent has always been one of the most interesting parts of the Christian calendar to me. It comes 40 days before Easter, is marked by ashes on the forehead, and is typically accompanied by a fast. Nowadays, that fast may be anything from food to social media, but if you are anything like me, you find yourself asking reasonably often, “What is that fast even for?”
Most of the time, we fast from things that are bad for us (soda, candy, sweets, etc…). While that is not necessarily bad, I think it is important to remember that fasting is a deeply spiritual practice.
Matthew 6:17-18 says, “But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to others that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”
Through these verses, it becomes clear fasting isn’t for us. It is for God.
Jesus even fasted before going into the desert to be tempted by the devil. He did this not to “give up” something but to gain closeness and intimacy with his Father Above before entering his most trying time in his ministry.
So, as we do as Jesus did during this lead-up to Easter, it begs the question- why fast now, during this season?
I believe we fast to draw nearer to the Father through the cross and what it represents.
One of the most commonly referenced verses concerning this is Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. This is life-changing news. We are given eternal life through Christ and his sacrifice! Hallelujah, and AMEN!!! But to understand what this means for us, I would direct you further into the New Testament to Paul’s letter to the Philippians. In Chapter 1, verse 12, he says, “Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the Gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the Gospel without fear.”
Paul is writing this from prison. “What has happened to him” has been an endless cycle of persecution, imprisonment, and hatred from the people he used to call his friends. Yet, he has the strength to rejoice in the midst of his suffering because it has served to advance the gospel.
I love these verses because they perfectly encapsulate the reason for this Lenten season. It highlights that we live in “the already, but not yet.” Jesus has already come and paid for our sins, but that is not the end of the story.
In Matthew 24, Jesus speaks of an unknown day that the Lord will come and commands us to be watchful. This is the source of Paul’s joy. Even amid his trials, he realizes that nothing can be done to him to take away his joy in Jesus. And while Paul waits for the day he sees Jesus again, he is privileged to preach his word to everyone he sees.
As I sit and reflect on my time in this program, I realize this might be the most “fellows-like” season of all. We have graduated from college, but we are not entirely released into the world at large. We are in our own sort of “already but not yet,” and it has been such an incredible gift. There are certainly challenges – work/life balance, time management, and class work come to mind. It is easy to use those challenges as an excuse to look forward to that “not yet,” but this Lent season, I sit and reflect on how much of a joy this season is. I look around and see myself surrounded by a community of peers and leaders who point me toward the cross at every turn. I am humbled by the opportunities this program has provided me, and I can’t help but smile as I rejoice in the already but not yet.
Jack Spangler Class 11
Hometown: Dallas, TX
Graduate of Samford University
