Trying Something New

Many of you may be in a similar boat to me at this point. This is day two of Lent and I don’t have a specific sacrifice in mind for this season. So, I started thinking. What if, instead of giving up something for Lent, I started doing something for Lent, and ideally, beyond. Nothing big or time-consuming but something that I can put into my daily grind. Something that could be a good practice in the long haul. One thing that came to mind was putting a smile on the face of someone new each day. Walking around Asbury (and other places too), I see people not living in daily joy. I see people burdened by something, while I’m not sure what, they’re burdened and it’s easy to see.

Recently, I’ve been reading Fearless by Max Lucado, a good book with some good ideas behind it. We, as a people, have learned to fear fear. One of my fears is meeting new people. Once I get comfortable with someone, on a personal level, I tend to be more open with them in everyday interactions. If I don’t know someone, I tend to put up my walls and not interact with them. See Katey Bartie, she went from a complete stranger to a sister, from never talking to each other to confidant status in a mere 10-week stint during the 2006 summer.

You may think that you haven’t made a good choice for this Lenten season. Maybe what you’ve chosen is too easy or perhaps, you’re in over your head. (note: being in over your head isn’t necessarily a bad thing.) I challenge you to challenge yourself, to push your pre-conceived limits. Challenges are, indeed, a good thing. They make us better people, they refine us much like the way that “iron sharpens iron”, Proverbs 27:17.

I’m accepting my challenge, will you?