Reflections on Lent

This post is by Anna Mullins, a member of Aldersgate UMC:

For many years, Lent has been a time for me to pause in this busy world and reflect on my faith journey. I was blessed to be born into a Christian family and my grandparents were among the pillars of a Methodist church in rural Kentucky. As I read the scriptures for Easter Sunday, I was taken back to one of my earliest memories of my faith. I was five years old and sitting on the front porch swing with my grandparents. They were telling Bible stories. I remember asking “what do I have to do to get Jesus to love me?” My grandfather said: “He already loves you and always will. He is a loving God who brought you into this world and has plans for you”. I asked: “how do I know what it is that He wants me to do”? They told me to pray every day, love Him, and be faithful to His Ten Commandments, which they recited to me. He will lead you.

As I reflect on Lent, Christ’s journey and His teachings, I am reminded of that day on the porch swing and the fact that God gave us the gift of free will – the freedom to choose. When I sat in that swing as a young girl, I wondered why God didn’t just make everyone be good. Free will is a hard concept to grasp, but we have to make the decision whether to invite the ultimate guest into our lives. With the hope and promise of Easter, now is the time to invite Him into our hearts and into our lives.