Repentance – A Call to Return!

Whether you practice Lenten fasting or not, Lent is a great time to focus on our faith as Christians – to devote ourselves to the secret place and come before God in a contrite position, seeking His face and understanding His will and plan for our lives.

Over the next 40 days, I urge you to commit to setting aside 30 minutes daily to pray, meditate on God’s Word, and journal in some way to internalize how God is speaking to you.

For the first ten days, we will focus on repentance. In Joel chapter 2, God urges us to return to Him with all our hearts and to rend our hearts, not our garments. What does this even mean? At this point in Israel’s history, repentance meant taking off your fine clothes and wearing sackcloth. It meant weeping and mourning - an outward, physical show of remorse. At that time, God urged the Israelites to rend their hearts, not their garments. He wanted to see a return of their hearts to Him and not merely an outward display of sadness.

Here is a question to consider: When was the last time you practiced true repentance? When did you last think, “I just can’t possibly continue on the way I am going; I must return to God with all my heart?" When did you last weep in God’s presence, seeking His forgiveness for ways you’ve let sin enter your lives?

If the answer to these questions is “not in a long time," make today the day you “return to Him with all your heart." Sin is just separation from God, and repentance is coming back to Him, acknowledging humbly the sin that created the space between God and you. Let’s embark on a journey of true repentance together!

Journaling Prompt:

While listening to worship music, use “I’m coming back to you, Jesus” as the core theme of today's journaling. Create a one-page entry that best exemplifies this theme, and express yourself using doodling, colors, paints, stickers, and journaling supplies in whatever way you desire.