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Lent---by serving? Lent is a time when many Christians prepare for Easter by observing a period of fasting, repentance, moderation
and spiritual discipline. The purpose is to set aside time for reflection on Jesus Christ - his suffering and his sacrifice,
his life, death, burial and resurrection. As a Jew, Christ was concerned about the heart of the people.
Micah 6:8 (New Living Translation) states, "O people, the Lord has told you what is good, and this is what he
requires of you: to do what is right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God." Isaiah 58:3-10 speaks further
on the heart of fasting.
"3 ‘We have fasted before you!’ they say."
‘Why aren’t you impressed?
We have been very hard on ourselves,
and you don’t even notice it!’
“I will tell you why!” I respond.
“It’s because you are fasting to please yourselves.
Even while you fast,
you keep oppressing your workers.
4 What good is fasting
when you keep on fighting
and quarreling?
This kind of fasting
will never get you anywhere with
me.
5 You humble yourselves
by going through the motions of penance,
bowing your heads
like reeds bending in the wind.
You dress in burlap
and cover yourselves with ashes.
Is this what you call fasting?
Do you really think this will please the Lord?
6 “No, this is the kind of fasting I want:
Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;
lighten the burden of those who work for you.
Let the oppressed go free,
and remove the chains that bind people.
7
Share your food with the hungry,
and give shelter to the homeless.
Give
clothes to those who need them,
and do not hide from relatives who need your help.
8 “Then your salvation will come like the dawn,
and your wounds will quickly
heal.
Your godliness will lead you forward,
and the glory of the Lord
will protect you from behind.
9 Then when you call, the Lord will answer.
‘Yes,
I am here,’ he will quickly reply.
“Remove the heavy yoke of oppression.
Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!
10 Feed the hungry,
and help those in trouble.
Then your light will shine out from the darkness,
and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon."
One thing that we have tried to prioritize at The
Open Door is to work with other individuals and organizations to care for those in need, instead of wasting time and effort
over "turf issues." We have been very blessed in the exponential growth of the number of those that we have
been able to help----due in great part to our willingness to work with others.
We do not discriminate against
those in need. There are a lot of needy people in this area. The 2000 census from the Glens Falls area
showed that 25% of the population was living in or below poverty level. With the recent economic turn of events,
by how much has that number risen? What about working people who don't fall into the "poverty" level, but
can't make ends meet because they pay the ever-rising expense of bills and taxes, and don't have anything left over for
food?
This Lent, why not do a little extra and care for those in need? It could be something as simple as
ensuring that an elderly neighbor is shoveled out after a storm. It could be offering to babysit for a single mom so that
she can have a small break. It could be baking something extra and giving it to someone who doesn't get home-baked food
often. Everyone has the capacity to bless someone else!
3:28 pm est
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