Going The Extra Mile

I was thinking about how today is Ash Wednesday and while I didn’t get ashes on my forehead today I did do some thinking about Lent. While giving something up for Lent is good, I believe there is something we can do in addition. Matthew 4:1 says “Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted.” This was right after Jesus was baptized and right before his ministry, instead of jumping off that spiritual high, he had to dip down low and go through trials and grow, and in order to do that Jesus had to go away, leave society and be alone for a while. In the fast-paced world we live in where we barley have time to eat three decent meals it can be tough to have a growing relationship with God. I mean growing, not stopping at a comfortable spot that “works for us”, and in order to do that we too need to get away. While I don’t have forty days to spend (let alone one day) I do have a smaller time frame each day to dedicate to God. I have a good chunk of time in the morning, and at night. I have time in the afternoons when I am done with my work. There is a ton of time we have each day in which we can step behind a closed door for a few minutes and pray or read a few verses of the Bible. This Lent I am going to try to dedicate forty minutes (yes forty minutes) each day to God. I know it sounds long, but when you think about it that’s ten minutes in the morning, two ten minute breaks, and ten minutes before I go to bed. Jesus knew before He set out that He needed to grow, He knew things had to change spiritually and mentally. Think, when we take that next step in our relationship with God and really make the effort to know Him, He uses us in amazing ways.