Greetings to you in the powerful, beautiful, and wonderful name of Jesus Christ – THE Risen Savior! What a beautiful winter’s day, a day that the Lord has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it! I trust that you had a good weekend with many blessings and time to enjoy each one…and as it was Valentine’s Day did you feel God’s love for you in very personal and affirming ways? Today I will be praying for you, asking Father to let you experience the beauty of being “restored in His love, strengthened in His grace, and surrounded with songs of joy.”
Today is Shrove Tuesday – “Pancake Day”…and it is not a day to get rid of the “yeast” of sin as I said–please forgive–but a day for getting rid of the “fat” in our homes for the next forty days. “Shrove” actually refers to the confession of sin and receiving absolution before you begin the journey of Lent. In getting rid of the “fat” one would use up milk, eggs, butter, bacon, cheese – it became tradition to have a “fat Tuesday”…Mardi Gras, and have a pancake supper.
As I have been preparing for Lent I have been reading about aspects of ‘sin’ in our lives. One writer suggest that sin turns us into “citizens of the night” and to commit our lives to low-light living. We hide, we deny, we cover, we lie, we excuse, we shift the blame, we rationalize, we defend, and we explain away. These are “the acts of darkness.” When we reach the end of our Lent journey, God will turn on the light, tear the veil off, shake up our world, and expose us to the light of grace (Paul David Tripp).
So, today on Shrove Tuesday I will eat my pancakes and sausage…must do my part, and I will seek to find myself in the light of His grace as I abandon through awareness, confession, and repentance…my acts of darkness. I will accept forgiveness and allow myself to be drawn closer to the Savior. Strange it is that this incredible journey would begin with a pancake supper and the reading of Psalm 51.
Something to ponder….be blessed