The spiritual pleasures of Lent

By Rod Anderson, CP Cartoonist Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Matt Chandler, pastor of the Village Church, has encouraged Christians to abstain from food for Lent to "orient their hearts around the betterness of Jesus above earthly pleasures."

In a video posted this week, Chandler pointed out that the season of Lent — which this year falls between March 6 and April 18 — traditionally involves followers of Christ fasting from food.

“Not all food but, but maybe that's breakfast, or maybe that's lunch, or something like that,” he clarified. “We want to set aside a good gift from God in the gift of food, the provision of that food, the gift of the taste of that food, the joy that comes from that food.”

When believers abstain from food, they’re essentially saying that there is a “greater pleasure to be known and a greater joy to be had” and a “provision available to me as a son or daughter of God that I want to lean into in this season,” Chandler explained.