LENT IS A TIME FOR REFLECTION

Lent is a time to focus on our relationship with God, examine our lives, and prepare for Easter.

Christ’s death and resurrection are the cornerstone of our Christian faith and the reason for Lent.

I remember some years back when The Passion of the Christ came out. My family and I went to the theater to see it. I wasn’t sure what to expect. I only knew that others who’d seen it said it was life-changing. 

As I sat in the theater witnessing Christ’s suffering in a way I never had before, I was overwhelmed by the physical pain He endured. I often had to look away. At the same time, I was also witnessing His faith. As a man, the spiritual strength it took for Him to willingly go through what He did for me, for all of us, was humbling. I felt wholly unworthy of His sacrifice.

I left the theater in tears, but also with gratitude. I’ve watched the film many times since then, especially during Lent, and each time I am moved beyond words. 

It is right to feel sorrow in response to Christ’s passion and death. 

However, there’s so much more to His death than this. Jesus is a willing victim. 

He walked to Jerusalem. Accepted His “cup” in the Garden of Gethsemane. He willingly stretched out His arms on the cross. No one took His life. He laid it down on His own. And He will take it up again. This is the power of Christ our Savior. This is the power of Lent.

Understanding the nature of Christ’s passion and death in this way was a gift. It opened my eyes and granted me an awareness I’d never experienced before. At that time in my life, I was suffering from addiction and an eating disorder. I was so lost. It would be many years still before I’d emerge from that darkness. 

I look back now and understand that it was but one of many miracles God placed in front of me. Miracles that eventually opened me fully to His presence and peace. Freedom and healing came because God never gave up on me. He never turned away. Once I surrendered and walked fully into His keeping, my life changed because God changed me.

I can’t watch The Passion of the Christ now without reflection. 

When I see the suffering Jesus endured, my suffering becomes inconsequential. He endured all of that for me. So that I could experience forgiveness, grace, and salvation. It’s a deeply personal revelation. One that overpowers all else: By His stripes, I am healed. It has to be personal. We have to take it in, feel it, and understand it on a visceral level. We can’t look away.

The price Jesus paid for our redemption was high.

He gave everything, all He was and all He had, for us. He showed us the meaning of sacrifice, of putting others before ourselves, of forgiveness and compassion, and most of all love. 

Jesus taught us that God is love. That God did not abandon His creation, but instead gave us His only Son so that we might be saved. The full extent of God’s love was revealed when Jesus gave His life on the cross for us. There is no greater love.

It is through that love that we are saved. We are worthy of that love when we die to ourselves and allow God’s grace to fully clothe and direct us. 

“Am I living a life worthy of Jesus’ sacrifice?”

As we move further into Lent, we are given the opportunity to reflect on our lives.

Do my choices and behaviors honor Christ? Because, in the long run, Jesus’ death and resurrection opened the door to salvation for all of us, but it’s up to us to walk through it. We bear responsibility for our redemption. 

As I reflect, I see the areas in my life that need work. The areas that cause me to falter and stumble. The things I need to pray about and surrender to God. That’s what reflection is. And it’s necessary. Because we are very human and very much in this world. We are susceptible to the pitfalls it contains and the suffering it creates. 

However, we are not alone on this journey. Jesus showed us that obedience to God leads to healing and peace. Christ’s entire life, ministry, death, and resurrection were God’s plan for us. So that we’d know Him, love Him, and one day return to Him. Jesus is the way to God. His willing obedience to His Father’s command ensures the gift of salvation for all who believe.

Jesus’ love for God made Him obedient to God; obedient even unto death. 

We demonstrate our love for God through obedience too. Jesus said, “If you love me, you will obey what I command,” John 14:15.

Following Christ’s example, we are called to submit ourselves fully to the will of God for no other reason than that we love Him. Faith borne of love is how we honor God. It’s also how we demonstrate Christ’s unconditional love to others.

Jesus’ love has the power to transform us. 

Christ’s love is powerful because it imbues us with His character, frees us from sin, and grants us victory over anything that would separate us from God. 

Jesus’ love compelled Him to die for us. It must compel us to turn from sin and no longer live for ourselves. Instead, we must strive to live lives worthy of His sacrifice, love one another as He commanded, and give our all for the gift of salvation He willingly secured for us.

All for Our Salvation

On the night He was betrayed,

Our Savior took the cup,

“This is my blood,

poured out for you in love.”

Then, He took the bread,

and shared what He had broken,

“This is my body,

laid down for salvation.”

“Do both of these in memory of Me,

and this gift that I give to all humanity.”

“To free you from the bondage,

of sin and separation,

to return you to the Father,

and the fullness of creation.

To fulfill My Father’s plan,

I make this sacrifice,

so that all who walk in darkness,

may be born into New Life.

All that is to come,

the Father has ordained.

All that I must do,

is done in His Holy Name.

Do not be afraid,

for this is why He sent me,

I am the Way, the Truth, the Life,

the fulfillment of His Mercy.

For God so loved the world,

He sent Me to take your place,

to conquer sin and death,

and sanctify you in His Grace.”

On the night He was betrayed,

our Savior took the cup,

“This is My blood,

poured out for you in love.”

Then, He took the bread,

and shared what He had broken,

“This is My body,

laid down for your salvation.”

Do both of these in memory of Me,

and the debt for sin LOVE has erased,

for all who turn to Me.”

JN Fenwick (© 2025)

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My Prayer

Thank You, Jesus, for Your willing sacrifice so that I, a sinner, might be born again into New Life. Help me to love as You love. Humble me so that I live a life worthy of Your sacrifice, obediently submitting to the Father in all things. Increase Your presence within me so that I decrease. Grant me a compassionate heart, a willing spirit, and faith to follow You all the days of my life. Amen.

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_{JN Fenwick (© 2025) | mothjournal14}