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The Thin Place

3 Lenten Practices for a Season of Self-Abandonment 

The season of Christmas has come and gone. Epiphany and the first season of Ordinary Time have come and is now passing by quickly. Next week will bring the start of a new season and a new focus, Lent.

This preparatory season begins with Ash Wednesday and lasts up until that glorious morning where we celebrate Christ’s defeat over the grave and triumphant rise from the grave.

But in these days leading up to Easter, we take stock of our lives, contemplating and practicing what it means to take up our cross and follow Jesus. It is a season where we, with John the Baptist, say, “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30, ESV).

There are days where we must surrender ourselves, again, at the foot of the cross. Traditionally, this has been done through 3 ways: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

I read recently a writer who said she rejected all Lenten practices because these were things she must be doing always. While I believe her heart was seeking to honor God, I think she was foolishly mistaken as to the “why” of practicing these things in earnest for a specific season.

I know that I need to pray more just as I know that fasting and almsgiving need to be more central parts of living out my faith.

Lent gives me an opportunity to set measurable, meaningful goals in these areas that are time specific. It is widely recognized that having measurable, specific, and time-bound goals is the way to achieve success. Lent gives us an opportunity to walk through a season together as a Church where we do just that.

So for believers, this is a wonderful season to re-center ourselves around Christ’s sacrifice on our behalf.

Prayer

Take time to examine your heart and motivations during prayer. Are you seeking to bless God or are you simply asking God to play genie and grant your wishes? Ask the Holy Spirit to convict you to pray in the same manner in which He intercedes for you before the Father.

Perhaps try to incorporate a new prayer practice during these next 40 days. Whether it is praying on your knees, audibly, with prayer beads, or through a written journal, there are many ways you can center your heart and remind yourself of your priorities in prayer. Find a written prayer that speaks to you and commit to praying it each day during Lent. For many years, the Psalms inspired my prayer life. That could be a wonderful place to begin. If you don’t regularly pray the Lord’s Prayer, I would encourage you to consider adding it to your morning or evening routine for this season.

Check out my latest post on cultivating a private prayer life here. 

Fasting

Fasting isn’t about depriving yourself to please God, it is about reminding yourself to realign your hungers so that you remember that above all else, you are sustained by the Bread of Life.

Taking 40 days to fast is off of Christ’s fasting in the wilderness before beginning His public ministry. Fasting spiritually strengthens us. Even Christ was strengthened during His time fasting. To neglect this spiritual discipline is foolish.

So pray and choose something to abstain from in these next 40 days. I highly encourage you to choose a food item to fast from as a reminder that we do not live on food, but on the Bread of Life. Many Churches abstain from meat or animal products during this time. For many of us, coffee is a staple part of our daily routine that would be grievously missed. We would do well to use this season to remind ourselves to seek after God daily with the same devotion.

Check out my spiritual disciplines post on fasting resources here. 

Almsgiving

We all know that faith without works is dead. We know that, when we stand at the Pearly Gates, Christ will ask how we have welcomed, fed, clothed, and served others in His name.

Paul’s letter to Timothy instructed women of God to clothe themselves in good works. Our devotion to good works should be as noticeable as the clothes we are wearing.

Taking a season to reevaluate our schedules and see where we carve out time to serve the least of these is an important part of the Christian walk. Many believers take the money saved from fasting and devote it to charitable organizations.

Setting aside time in Lent to serve allows us to embrace the habit of serving as a short-term goal helps us embrace the habit of regularly seeking to serve.

Call your local church if you are unsure of where to serve and ask the deacons if there is a tangible way you can support their ministry. Ask if there is someone who is shut in and could use company or a meal. Seek to open your home in hospitality. Call a prison ministry or local right to life chapter and ask what you can do to help aid their ministries with your time. Take time either individually or with your family to regularly serve your community as the hands and feet of Christ.

Check out this post for more on the Christian call to serve here. 

Take a morning to pray and ask the Lord to guide you this Lent. Seek to build up intentional practices that will help you daily live out your calling to take up your cross and live as Christ exemplified.

To aid you in this discernment and to help you keep yourself accountable, I have created a printable guide to help you determine and write out how you will practice the disciplines of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving this Lent. Sign-up below to receive free access to The Thin Place Resource Library and the printable Lenten worksheet.

May we all walk through this season with the love that Christ has lavished upon us.

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The Comments

  • Rebecca rice
    February 5, 2018

    Can I just say that I absolutely love your pictures! You always have such beautiful words but complement them with amazing photos that really inspire me!

    Reply
  • Donna Richard Miller
    February 6, 2018

    What a beautiful post! I love the pictures also! This is a wonderful season to be in. I love Easter! Blessings sweet sister! ❤

    Reply
  • Jenny
    February 7, 2018

    Love this post! This line really spoke to me, “Ask the Holy Spirit to convict you to pray in the same manner in which He intercedes for you before the Father”. Beautiful! Thanks for sharing this look into Lenten practices, and helping me refocus my mind on what I will fast for Lent this year.

    Reply
  • Erica D Ardali
    February 8, 2018

    I attend a non-denominational church. We don’t really celebrate Lent, but we do sort of a fasting and prayer challenge type thing. lol It doesn’t really have an official name. I do love to see how other people worship. Very insightful

    Reply
  • Stacey
    February 13, 2018

    I have never practiced lent since I was raised in a non-denominational church, but I love how you write about this fasting as Jesus did before his ministry and to utilize this time to surrender to him.

    Reply
  • April@loveourreallife
    March 14, 2019

    What a beautiful post. I love your suggestions on outreach. Sometimes people really want to help and minister to others but they don’t know where to begin.

    Reply
    • Bailey
      April@loveourreallife
      March 27, 2019

      It’s easy to allow ourselves to be paralyzed by options but we need to move beyond good intentions and find a way to serve.

      Reply
  • Colleen Mitchell
    March 14, 2019

    I like the idea of trying a new prayer style for 40 days. It just occurred to me that The Purpose Driven Life is 40 chapters and possibly intended to be read during the Lenten season.

    I have a friend who is using Lent to dedicate herself to writing 1000 words a day in pursuit of writing a book. I’ve done something similar in the past — giving up time spent on frivolous things to write. Great post.

    Reply
    • Bailey
      Colleen Mitchell
      March 27, 2019

      That’s so interesting! I haven’t read The Purpose-Driven Life but it sounds like it might be!

      I did that a few years ago as well! I gave up (well, greatly limited) TV and dedicated myself to writing.

      Reply
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Hello, I’m Bailey
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Hello, I’m Bailey

The Thin Place was born out of a season of struggle. A season where I felt stretched thin and desperately longed to see the goodness of God in the land of the living. The goodness of God showed up in unexpected ways. During that season, the spiritual disciplines laid out in Scripture, the traditions of the Church, and the reminders of His faithfulness seen in liturgial living and the feasts and seasons of the Church calendar all opened my eyes to the hope we have in Christ.

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Chances are, the Books of Maccabees are probably the deuterocanonical books you are most familiar with!  It is in these books that we find the origins of Hanukkah.
To be honest, they are a rough read. A really rough read. They detail the suffering the people of God endured while their enemies attempted to control their land and wipe out their religion. 
It is a set of books filled with great suffering as many of the faithful are killed but it is also a book of great bravery and trust in the Lord in the midst of trials.
In Maccabees, two of the theological principles used today are clearly seen. The first, that God created the world out of nothing. 2 Maccabees 7:28 details how God did not make the world out of things already created, but out of nothing. 
The second principle is that of praying for the dead. While there are references throughout Scripture and it is a clear practice of the Early Church, it is most clearly referenced in 2 Maccabees 12. 
#christianwoman #graceupongrace #jesusgirl #inspiredfaith #womenlivingwell #jesuscalling #faithfilledcaptions #catholicblogger #Catholicconvert #CatholicWoman #chasingsacred #christianwomenleaders #bibleverse #biblestudy  #christianblogger #faithinhim #proverbs31woman #faithful #Godisgood #encouragementgallery #godslove #christianposts #christianquote #prayer #prayertime
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Chances are, the Books of Maccabees are probably the deuterocanonical books you are most familiar with! It is in these books that we find the origins of Hanukkah. To be honest, they are a rough read. A really rough read. They detail the suffering the people of God endured while their enemies attempted to control their land and wipe out their religion. It is a set of books filled with great suffering as many of the faithful are killed but it is also a book of great bravery and trust in the Lord in the midst of trials. In Maccabees, two of the theological principles used today are clearly seen. The first, that God created the world out of nothing. 2 Maccabees 7:28 details how God did not make the world out of things already created, but out of nothing. The second principle is that of praying for the dead. While there are references throughout Scripture and it is a clear practice of the Early Church, it is most clearly referenced in 2 Maccabees 12. #christianwoman #graceupongrace #jesusgirl #inspiredfaith #womenlivingwell #jesuscalling #faithfilledcaptions #catholicblogger #Catholicconvert #CatholicWoman #chasingsacred #christianwomenleaders #bibleverse #biblestudy #christianblogger #faithinhim #proverbs31woman #faithful #Godisgood #encouragementgallery #godslove #christianposts #christianquote #prayer #prayertime
1 day ago
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Judith is another archetypal story of the battle being won at the hand of a woman, seen also in Judges and Esther. 
During the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, an army is sent to destroy the mountain town that Judith lives in. The people are greatly distressed and death seems to be the only option. Judith, a wealthy widow, trusts in the Lord and ultimately, kills the opposing military leader and brings peace to the people.
It is a story of God’s provision for His people in their exile through an unlikely source, a widow. In Judith, we see an archetype pointing to Mary and to the Church, waiting for her true Bridegroom. 
But it is also a story that points to the Lord’s desire to draw all nations to Himself! One of my favorite parts of the book of Judith is that it tells us of the conversion of a man who initially sets out to fight the Jewish people coming to believe in the God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. 
“And when Achior saw all that the God of Israel had done, he believed firmly in God, and was circumcised, and joined the house of Israel.” - Judith 14:10
It beautiful reminder that God’s deliverance is for all mankind. 
#proverbs31woman #proverbs31 #womenintheword  #virtuouswoman #godlywoman #godsgirl #christianliving #butgod #blessedandhighlyfavored #trustgod #daughteroftheking #walkbyfaith #daughterofaking #beautyfromashes #graceupongrace #dailydevotional #faithjourney #jesuslover #faithblogger #godisgood #graceoverperfection #michiganblogger #wordbeforworld #encouragingquotes #christianlife #christianencouragement
thethinplace
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Judith is another archetypal story of the battle being won at the hand of a woman, seen also in Judges and Esther. During the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, an army is sent to destroy the mountain town that Judith lives in. The people are greatly distressed and death seems to be the only option. Judith, a wealthy widow, trusts in the Lord and ultimately, kills the opposing military leader and brings peace to the people. It is a story of God’s provision for His people in their exile through an unlikely source, a widow. In Judith, we see an archetype pointing to Mary and to the Church, waiting for her true Bridegroom. But it is also a story that points to the Lord’s desire to draw all nations to Himself! One of my favorite parts of the book of Judith is that it tells us of the conversion of a man who initially sets out to fight the Jewish people coming to believe in the God of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob. “And when Achior saw all that the God of Israel had done, he believed firmly in God, and was circumcised, and joined the house of Israel.” - Judith 14:10 It beautiful reminder that God’s deliverance is for all mankind. #proverbs31woman #proverbs31 #womenintheword #virtuouswoman #godlywoman #godsgirl #christianliving #butgod #blessedandhighlyfavored #trustgod #daughteroftheking #walkbyfaith #daughterofaking #beautyfromashes #graceupongrace #dailydevotional #faithjourney #jesuslover #faithblogger #godisgood #graceoverperfection #michiganblogger #wordbeforworld #encouragingquotes #christianlife #christianencouragement
2 days ago
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If there was any Old Testament book I would love to see made into a movie - it would be Tobit! It has everything! Despair! True love! Home remedies! Battles against demons! A quest to find the family treasure! It is truly a dramatic book. Like the book of Esther, it demonstrates God care for His people during their exile. 
Tobit is a narrative book. Like Job, it begins with a man who served the Lord but was met with misfortune so great that he begs the Lord to let Him die. At the same time, a young widow across the country is making the same request. God answers both of their prayers through the intervention of the angel Raphael who, in disguise as a man, helps Tobit’s son on a journey. It is a short, compelling story and, for that reason, it is a really great place to start if you want to read through the Deuterocanonical books.
There is also a beautiful contrast to Adam and Eve seen in the love story of Tobias and Sarah. Where one couple listened to devil and succumbed to temptation, we see the other stand firm in reliance on the Lord. This points us to the future coming of Christ and His defense of His bride, the Church.
#christianwoman #graceupongrace #jesusgirl #inspiredfaith #womenlivingwell #jesuscalling #faithfilledcaptions #catholicblogger #Catholicconvert #CatholicWoman #chasingsacred #christianwomenleaders #bibleverse #biblestudy  #christianblogger #faithinhim #proverbs31woman #faithful #Godisgood #encouragementgallery #godslove #christianposts #christianquote #prayer #prayertime #miblogger #michiganblogger
thethinplace
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•
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If there was any Old Testament book I would love to see made into a movie - it would be Tobit! It has everything! Despair! True love! Home remedies! Battles against demons! A quest to find the family treasure! It is truly a dramatic book. Like the book of Esther, it demonstrates God care for His people during their exile. Tobit is a narrative book. Like Job, it begins with a man who served the Lord but was met with misfortune so great that he begs the Lord to let Him die. At the same time, a young widow across the country is making the same request. God answers both of their prayers through the intervention of the angel Raphael who, in disguise as a man, helps Tobit’s son on a journey. It is a short, compelling story and, for that reason, it is a really great place to start if you want to read through the Deuterocanonical books. There is also a beautiful contrast to Adam and Eve seen in the love story of Tobias and Sarah. Where one couple listened to devil and succumbed to temptation, we see the other stand firm in reliance on the Lord. This points us to the future coming of Christ and His defense of His bride, the Church. #christianwoman #graceupongrace #jesusgirl #inspiredfaith #womenlivingwell #jesuscalling #faithfilledcaptions #catholicblogger #Catholicconvert #CatholicWoman #chasingsacred #christianwomenleaders #bibleverse #biblestudy #christianblogger #faithinhim #proverbs31woman #faithful #Godisgood #encouragementgallery #godslove #christianposts #christianquote #prayer #prayertime #miblogger #michiganblogger
3 days ago
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3/5
The Book of Wisdom full of poetic principles and outlines how to live life well. Written around the time of the Maccabean revolt, it is written in the style of Solomon (and is sometimes referred to as “The Wisdom of Solomon”) but was written by later authors.
While this book was not accepted in the Jewish cannon, it is in every copy of the Greek Septuagint but it was quote by St Augustine over 800 times and, most importantly, was declared Scripture at the Councils of Hippo and Carthage. 
It focuses on Wisdom guiding the lives of the faithful, the follies of the wicked, and focuses heavily on our future home with God and the life to come. 
For those of you familiar with the Nicene Creed, the Book of Wisdom is one of the sources of inspiration of our description of Jesus Christ. The reference to Christ being “Light from Light” is taken from Wisdom 7:26 which refers to Wisdom as being a “reflection of eternal light.” 
There are also several passages in Wisdom which foretell the death of Christ. One of my favorite passages is Wisdom 14:7, “Blessed is the wood by which righteousness comes,” which reminds me how truly blessed is the cross which held the Savior of the world, our perfect Sacrifice. 
Wisdom is very similar to the book of Proverbs in length and style. It points constantly to the Lord who, as James tells us, is ready to give wisdom to those who ask. 
#bibletime #biblereading #readyourbible #proverbs31woman #proverbs31 #womenintheword #savedbygrace #virtuouswoman #godlywoman #godsgirl #christianliving #butgod #givemejesus #trustgod #daughteroftheking #walkbyfaith #beautyfromashes #graceupongrace #dailydevotional #faithjourney #jesuslover #faithblogger #godisgood #graceoverperfection #michiganblogger #biblescripture #catholicbible
thethinplace
thethinplace
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The Book of Wisdom full of poetic principles and outlines how to live life well. Written around the time of the Maccabean revolt, it is written in the style of Solomon (and is sometimes referred to as “The Wisdom of Solomon”) but was written by later authors. While this book was not accepted in the Jewish cannon, it is in every copy of the Greek Septuagint but it was quote by St Augustine over 800 times and, most importantly, was declared Scripture at the Councils of Hippo and Carthage. It focuses on Wisdom guiding the lives of the faithful, the follies of the wicked, and focuses heavily on our future home with God and the life to come. For those of you familiar with the Nicene Creed, the Book of Wisdom is one of the sources of inspiration of our description of Jesus Christ. The reference to Christ being “Light from Light” is taken from Wisdom 7:26 which refers to Wisdom as being a “reflection of eternal light.” There are also several passages in Wisdom which foretell the death of Christ. One of my favorite passages is Wisdom 14:7, “Blessed is the wood by which righteousness comes,” which reminds me how truly blessed is the cross which held the Savior of the world, our perfect Sacrifice. Wisdom is very similar to the book of Proverbs in length and style. It points constantly to the Lord who, as James tells us, is ready to give wisdom to those who ask. #bibletime #biblereading #readyourbible #proverbs31woman #proverbs31 #womenintheword #savedbygrace #virtuouswoman #godlywoman #godsgirl #christianliving #butgod #givemejesus #trustgod #daughteroftheking #walkbyfaith #beautyfromashes #graceupongrace #dailydevotional #faithjourney #jesuslover #faithblogger #godisgood #graceoverperfection #michiganblogger #biblescripture #catholicbible
4 days ago
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4/5
Until I read the entire Bible last year for the Bible in Lent challenge, I had never read most of the Deuterocanonical / Apocryphal books of the Bible. When I did this, I realized that, aside from a vague notion of Maccabees from Hanukkah books, I had absolutely no idea what the rest of the books contained.
For the next few days, we're going to do a little overview of each of these books in the Bible.
But first, why aren't these books in the Protestant Bible?
Like most of the divides in the Catholic and Protestant conversation, there is a lot of nuances. Luther’s own translation of the Bible included these books although he moved them to a separate section. They were also included in the King James Bible of 1611 and the Geneva Bible even though they were viewed as apocryphal or “outside of Scripture.” It was not standard even in Protestantism to exclude these books from the Bible printing until 1825. 
Essentially, there is a lot of historical evidence that the church throughout history considered these books a part of the Bible. But earlier in the Church, we see evidence of Church leaders such as St. Polycarp, St. Clement of Rome, Origen, St. Athanasius, St. Jerome, and St. Augustine,  affirming some or all of these books as Scripture.
It's clear that historically, believers have seen these books as beneficial so I hope you'll join me in looking at them this week!
#godsword #jesusislife #dailydevotion #shedelights #graceupongrace #godisfaithful #lordjesus #blessedisshe #biblestudy #trustinhim #catholicism #bible #jesuslove #christianposts #readyourbible #bibledaily #intheword #wordbeforeworld #bibleversedaily #gracemakers #christianwomenleaders #bibletruth #jesusisthereasonfortheseason #godlovesyou #prayerchangesthings #dailybibleverse #seekhim
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Until I read the entire Bible last year for the Bible in Lent challenge, I had never read most of the Deuterocanonical / Apocryphal books of the Bible. When I did this, I realized that, aside from a vague notion of Maccabees from Hanukkah books, I had absolutely no idea what the rest of the books contained. For the next few days, we're going to do a little overview of each of these books in the Bible. But first, why aren't these books in the Protestant Bible? Like most of the divides in the Catholic and Protestant conversation, there is a lot of nuances. Luther’s own translation of the Bible included these books although he moved them to a separate section. They were also included in the King James Bible of 1611 and the Geneva Bible even though they were viewed as apocryphal or “outside of Scripture.” It was not standard even in Protestantism to exclude these books from the Bible printing until 1825. Essentially, there is a lot of historical evidence that the church throughout history considered these books a part of the Bible. But earlier in the Church, we see evidence of Church leaders such as St. Polycarp, St. Clement of Rome, Origen, St. Athanasius, St. Jerome, and St. Augustine, affirming some or all of these books as Scripture. It's clear that historically, believers have seen these books as beneficial so I hope you'll join me in looking at them this week! #godsword #jesusislife #dailydevotion #shedelights #graceupongrace #godisfaithful #lordjesus #blessedisshe #biblestudy #trustinhim #catholicism #bible #jesuslove #christianposts #readyourbible #bibledaily #intheword #wordbeforeworld #bibleversedaily #gracemakers #christianwomenleaders #bibletruth #jesusisthereasonfortheseason #godlovesyou #prayerchangesthings #dailybibleverse #seekhim
5 days ago
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5/5
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