Generosity Tip: Lent–An Opportunity to Model Self-Giving

date Posted: February 1, 2019

Lent is just around the corner and for many congregations it is an opportunity to encourage members to follow practices of self-denial, self-sacrifice and other practices to more fully follow the example of our Lord Jesus.

At the same time, I have seen changes of emphases with regards to “giving something up” in Lent.  While we may still have pancake dinners or fastnachts on “Fat Tuesday,” it is rare that eating and cooking practices change dramatically during Lent, and if you find “hot-crossed buns,” instead of a mere drizzle of icing, it will be nearly fully iced so that the cross is barely recognizable.

Healthy, mission-focused congregations use Lent as an opportunity not only to give sacrificially and with the possibility of self-denial, but also to model those same qualities by choosing special projects in the local or global community that go beyond the congregation’s own budget or its regular support to the synod and ELCA.  Here are some of the projects I have seen in bulletins, newsletters, and websites:

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