Lent - A Season of Reflection

Lent is the the 40 days before Easter when Christians have historically taken spiritual inventory of their lives and repented for sins. Sin isn't a four-letter word, it is simply an honest statement about being human. We sin.

As a kid, I loved Lent. I remember how we "put away" the Alleluia, sometimes even physically in a box. The thing I remember most is the way the music changed. Christmas and Epiphany were filled with melodies that let you know everything was right with the world, Jesus was here and we knew that he was the one God had chosen to bring salvation to all the world. But, Lent was something wholly other. Because Jesus was the one who had come to bring the world freedom, there had to be a season of struggle, a journey that was more difficult than Immanuel, "God is with us". The music made a dramatic change into minor keys, darker tones and unresolved chords. The music itself anticipated Easter, but would not go there until the resurrection. Then on Easter morning the trumpet would sound...oh wait, we're not there yet. I'll come back to it at Easter. It's worth the wait.