This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.
I did not grow up observing Lent.
It is, however, something that my wife and I have added to our family devotions and to our own personal spiritual disciplines, usually in the form of some sort of fast.
You see, the time between Lent and Easter is a very important time for our family, both spiritually and personally.
Spiritually
I like Easter more than Christmas. I like that Easter is less commercial and, to me, more spiritual. Christmas is important, and I love the Christmas season, but to me Easter is crucial. Easter is where it’s at. No Easter, no Faith.
“And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is futile and your faith is empty.” I Corinthians 15:14 (NET)
Because of this my wife and I have started to take Easter, Passover, and the whole Lenten season more seriously.
While Advent is a time of longing, Lent is a time of preparing.
Personally
It is also a very important time for our family because it marks the life of our middle child, our middle son, Jude.
Jude was born February 11, the week before Lent began and died, two years later, on April, 12, shortly after Easter.
Because of this, Lent is a very emotional and meaningful time for our family.
I get giving something up. I gave up my son.
I know the pain of the Father as He watched His son die.
I have cried out, like Jesus, “why have you forsaken me?”
I get Good Friday. Like others new to Lent, I too question how the day Jesus died could be called good. I also question how any good can from our son’s death.
Yet I still long for the hope that comes with Resurrection Sunday.
I need the hope of Easter.
As we share Lent together with this devotional, we will focus on two themes; being emptied and being humbled. Both of which come from Philippians 2:7-8:
(Jesus) emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature. He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death —even death on a cross!
In preparation for this Lent devotional read Philippians 2:1-11.
Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort provided by love, any fellowship in the Spirit, any affection or mercy, complete my joy and be of the same mind, by having the same love, being united in spirit, and having one purpose. Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself. Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well. You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had,
who though he existed in the form of God
did not regard equality with God
as something to be grasped,but emptied himself
by taking on the form of a slave,
by looking like other men,
and by sharing in human nature.He humbled himself,
by becoming obedient to the point of death
—even death on a cross!As a result God highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,so that at the name of Jesus
every knee will bow
—in heaven and on earth and under the earth—and every tongue confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord
to the glory of God the Father.
After a brief introduction, Wednesday – Saturday, each week we will look at Lent through the eyes of a movie. So get ready to discover Lent in a whole new way as we prepare ourselves for Jesus’ death and resurrection.
This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.
[Tweet “Check out Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional.”]
Get my free e-book, How to See God’s Story in Movies. This free download will help you share God’s story with your kids and students by showing you how to see God’s story in movies.
Not only will this guarantee that you get the latest Reel Parables posts, but you will also get my most popular downloads, including “How to Time Travel.”
And be sure to check out my About page for more info on what I do around here at Reel Parables.
Until next time, God bless.
Simon L Smith