Wait, It's Already Lent?

Photo by Attila Janosi on Unsplash

Easter is coming soon! I know, we are still in the midst of brutal snow and winter. January has been a beast. But February 2^nd is Groundhog Day, Our Souper Bowl Lunch is on the 8^th. Valentine’s Day is the following weekend, and Ash Wednesday is February 18^th. That means we are practically at Easter! I know, I might be a little ahead of myself.

 As a child, I was not big on Ash Wednesday. My Baptist church was not big on Ash Wednesday or the whole Lenten season. Maybe it felt ritualistic, putting ashes on our foreheads and the like. But as an adult, I am a fan of Lent and the Lenten approach. No, I am not suggesting Fish on Friday and all of that. But I am a fan of taking time to focus, to get back in tune, to use that time to renew your relationship. I like to treat holidays like Christmas and Easter as seasons, rather than days. Coming out of the Red-Letter Challenge, I am excited about the next forty days. The forty days leading up to Easter.

Photo by Attila Janosi on Unsplash

For me, everywhere I turn, there is a tug for me to use these weeks to restore my relationships. Tucked away in the book of Numbers, there is a special pledge called a Nazirite Vow. Numbers 6 describes the process one needs to take, “'If a man or woman wants to make a special vow, a vow of separation to the LORD as a Nazirite’ (Numbers 6:2). Samuel and Samson in the Old Testament and John the Baptist in the New Testament speak of this vow. Numbers 6 describes it as being a vow taken by men and women alike purely for personal reasons, such as thanksgiving for recovery from illness or for the birth of a child.

The vow had a specific time frame, a beginning, and an end as these two statements indicate: “Throughout the period of his separation he is consecrated to the LORD... Now this is the law for the Nazirite when the period of his separation is over” (Numbers 6:8, 13a). So, the Nazirite vow usually had both a beginning and an end. Although the Nazirite vow is an Old Testament concept, there is a New Testament parallel.

Photo by Randy Fath on Unsplash

In Romans 12:1-2, Paul states, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing, and perfect will.” For Christians, the ancient Nazirite vow symbolizes the need to be separate from this world and to be a holy people consecrated to God (2 Timothy 1:9; 1 Peter 1:15).

Now, the Nazirite vow usually called for not cutting one’s hair and involved special sacrifices when the vow ended. We will forego these. I get harassed enough for not trimming my beard every three weeks, and there really is no place to put cows in the building. But the concept is one I hope you will entertain over these next few weeks. Use the weeks before Easter to get closer to God and get into your Bible… See if God might be trying to tell you something.