40 Days of Prayer & Blessing - Commencing February 25
Greetings Members and Friends!
When I was a child, I honestly believed God had ordained Christ to die in March/April so that we could compare his death and resurrection to the season of spring: Jesus defeated death and brought new life; spring defeats winter and brings new flowers. Simplistic maybe, but I was convinced until I discovered that Easter in the Southern Hemisphere is celebrated in the fall.
Around the same time I learned this interesting fact of earth science, I was introduced to the season of Lent. My grandmother asked me what I planned to fast in preparation for Easter. In response, I earnestly, yet resolutely, pronounced fasting pointless, claiming that if there was something in my life worth giving up for 40 days, it was worth giving up forever. Oh, and by the way, there was no such item in my life. After she finished wiping away tears of laughter, my grandmother explained to me that the purpose of Lent was more than fasting things in our lives. Instead, she said that Lent allowed us to worship God more fully because, through the prayer and self-denial it proscribed, we were spiritually renewed and given increased clarity about His will for us individually and for His Kingdom generally.
These two discoveries led me to reconsider my basic assumptions about God and faith. After some intense thought, I realized Easter could equally be compared to fall because in order for there to be new life there must be death to the old. I also came to understand that in order for us to be renewed in Christ, we must be in continuous prayer, seeking God’s will for our lives and His guidance in all our actions. In essence, I learned the wonderful truth that the Gospel is relevant at all times, in all places, for all people, and in relation to all things. Over the years, as I have grown in the Lord, I have even come to accept my grandmother’s perspective on fasting. By adding regular fasting to my prayer life, I have seen God move more powerfully just as He did in the lives of Esther, Daniel, Isaiah, and Paul.
Lent has been described as a time of inner cleansing and reflection upon Jesus Christ's sufferings. It is one of many historical church practices being embraced today by an increasing number of Christians, including evangelicals, who find themselves embracing the Apostle Paul’s heart cry that he might “know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death”. Although, like many of you, I do not celebrate Lent, I would like to challenge the members of the Christian Legal Fellowship to join with me in prayer and fasting during this season. My hope is that through concerted prayer, the Holy Spirit will reveal to us the path we should walk to reach more people in the legal community and to begin anew our calling to redeem the law, for His Word says that the “effectual fervent prayers of a righteous man avail much”.
Please join us in our 40 Days of Prayer and Blessing campaign beginning February 25. Attached you will find a prayer calendar that delineates a number of different target groups, projects, and interventions associated with CLF, as well as a few corresponding points to specifically raise in your petitions to our Lord. I realize fasting is a personal decision, not mandated by Scripture nor necessarily limited to food. Many of you will find creative ways to express your commitment to the Lord and your reflection upon His sufferings as you seek the Holy Spirit’s direction during this time. However, I would like to suggest that for the fasting component of this campaign you prayerfully consider putting aside one dollar a day for the length of the campaign to be sent to CLF on April 5 for the ministries listed on the calendar. Regardless of whether you decide to take up this particular fasting challenge, we hope you will incorporate these prayer items into your daily prayer time throughout the campaign period.
Thank you in advance for your participation and prayers. May this be the start of Divine renewal in the Canadian legal system.
He is risen,
Stephanie Luck, J.D., Esq.
CLF Legal Researcher
Click here to view prayer calendar.
