Status Updates From 40 Days of Decrease: A Diff...

“Deserts unclutter the soul. The hot desert sun vaporizes all manner of luxuries. Then the cold, shelterless nights expose the essential guts oflife. I needed to eat, to sleep, to be protected, and to not be alone. Lent had come half a year early. God asked me to fast mental and physical strength. He invited me into holy weakness.
I found Jesus there.”

Love this book- especially leading up to Easter!

Picking up this book again for Lent — I remember reading this back in college and absolutely loving the simplicity and heart behind fasting. I felt led to pick it back up for this year—only on Day One but my goodness Chole is one of my all-time favorite authors of today.

Restarting for Lent again this year- a well of spiritual sustenance examining a different lens in approaching fasting

“Decrease is only holy when the destination is love”

happy first day of Lent!

Re-reading lent devotional

the way this devo has been calling me out

A wonderful walk through the Lenten season. I loved how, in a lot of ways, Alicia’s message sort of matched the Liturgical readings for that specific day. I loved the daily fasts that were super intentional, I loved the style of writing.

If you’re looking for a book for the 40 days of Lent, this is the one!

so good, using for Lent focus and just the right material!

“…Faith means believing in advance what will only make sense in reverse “ Philip Yancey I need that todayyyyyy

Incredible

looking forward every morning for the days reading 🤸🏽

It is a nice contemplative space to meet the Lord in.

“On the cross, leadership dies. On the cross, success dies. On the cross, skills die, and excellence dies. All of my strengths - nailed to the cross. All of my weaknesses nailed to the cross. All of my yearnings for bigger and better, for anything other than Christ himself - nailed to the cross.”

Love it!

a great lent read so far

Eleven days into lent, this book is already revealing so many blind spots in my life / faith.

My favorite quote so far: “We are not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be.” - C.S. Lewis

This has been a wonderful Lenten study.

Half way through lent and this is one of my favourite books of all time already.

This is a daily devotional for Lent. Day 1 and very much enjoying it so far!

"We all guard against sins of commission and we are vigilant toward sins of omission. But achievements-even in small doses-can make us vulnerable to sins of ADDITION: adding niceties and luxuries to our list of basic needs, adding imaginations onto the strong back of vision, adding self-satisfaction to the purity of peace."

"We are duly thankful, challenged, and inspired by Jesus' forty-day fast from food in the Judean wilderness. Perhaps we should likewise be grateful, awed, and humbled by His thirty-year fast from praise, power, and potential in Nazareth. It takes a great deal of strength to choose weakness."

“We are not necessarily doubting that God will do the best for us; we are wondering how painful the best will turn out to be.”

—C. S. Lewis (1898–1963)

Day three

“When fresh beginnings are stalked by the memories of stale endings, a sickly substance can steal our strength: regret. Regret empties anticipation, flattens dreams, and suffocates hope, because regret is a form of self-punishment. Whereas hindsight helps us learn from the past, regret beats us up with the past.”

Day one

Good book for Lent

With any Lenten season, I believe, this would be a true gem. During this season especially, it is timely and ever more wonderful in keeping me turned towards truth and love. I may have to read this every 40 days!

Enjoying the words of John
He must become greater;I must become less. John 3:30