Lent

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday and the beginning of the Lenten Season.  Lent is the liturgical observance of the 40 days leading up to Easter Sunday.  It is a time of spiritual reflection, prayer, sacrifice, fasting, repentance and focusing on the true meaning of Christ's sacrificial death and resurrection.  I'll be blogging more on Lent in my personal blog at Naked Theology if you're interested, but I wanted to share with you two great resources that I found and thought might be helpful to you in your Life Groups.  Consider taking a look at these studies and choosing one to use as curriculum during the 40 days of Lent.  I think it will add a different element to your group meetings and help others focus on the importance of this time of year.  Both of these studies are linked from our main Life Groups website and will be linked below as well. 

Give It Up For Lent.  - This is a three part study complete with leader and participant guides that focuses on the aspect "sacrifice" during Lent.  This study will help you and your Life Group to focus on giving something up during the 40 days of Lent and the real reason we offer sacrifice to God.  It goes way beyond giving up caffeine or chocolate, and this study will reveal what "sacrifice" really means.

Elements is a website that provides powerful and transforming resources to use throughout the Season of Lent.  Simply go to the Resources section for 5 weekly Bible studies: Ash, Fire, Clay, Water, Oil.  Each study will only be posted during each corresponding week.  This site also offers helpful daily devotionals, prayer station and tips on leading a small group throughout Lent.

It could be argued that Lent is the most holy and significant time of the year for followers of Christ.  Everything we do revolves around the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Whatever you decide to do in your Life Groups, consider finding ways to focus on these aspects.  Lent is what everything comes down to and the pinnacle reason your are a leader of Life Groups.