Exodus 16:27-35

On the seventh day some of the people went out to gather, and they found none. The Lord said to Moses, “How long will you refuse to keep my commandments and instructions? See! The Lord has given you the Sabbath; therefore on the sixth day he gives you food for two days; each of you stay where you are; do not leave your place on the seventh day.” So the people rested on the seventh day.

The Israelites called it manna; it was like white coriander seed, and the taste of it was like wafers made with honey. Moses said, “This is what the Lord has commanded: Let an omer of it be kept throughout your generations in order that they may see the food with which I fed you in the wilderness when I brought you out of the land of Egypt.” And Moses said to Aaron, “Take a jar, and put an omer of manna in it, and place it before the Lord, to be kept throughout your generations.” Just as the Lord commanded Moses, so Aaron placed it before the covenant, for safekeeping. The Israelites ate manna forty years, until they came to a habitable land; they ate manna, until they came to the border of the land of Canaan.
 

Today’s Reflective Questions

• Even if it is not obvious, where do you see a theme of fasting — or withholding something — in the assigned reading?
• Lent is a time that encourages self-reflection. What is your heart, mind, or body saying in this season?
• What might God be saying to you? Is there anything you want to say to God about the practice of giving something up in this season?

This Week’s Lenten Focus: Fasting 

This Lenten season, Bishop David Wilson, along with some conference staff and members of the laity, are inviting the people of the Great Plains Conference and beyond to “Pay Attention to God’s Voice” during this season of Lent. The theme for this week is Fasting and Prayer.

Discipline isn’t necessarily something to which we naturally gravitate, but when we’re serious about becoming disciples of Jesus, it’s an essential part of the Christian life. This week we’ll take a look at the spiritual discipline of fasting and consider how intentionally limiting something that’s good (food, technology, or something else) cultivates discipline that helps us pay closer attention to God’s voice, individually and in a community.

Life isn’t found in calories, vitamins, or nutrients, though those things sustain it. Rather, life is found in submitting our lives to God, in taking on the life of Christ, and in putting one foot after another, day after day. You are invited to practice cultivating communion with God even in the intentional denial of something that is good.
   

• Watch a video featuring Rev. Ashlee Alley Crawford and Rev. Bellarmee Milosi talking about fasting.
• Watch a video featuring Bishop David Wilson inviting you to observe a Holy Lent.
• To learn more, check out this special page on our website dedicated to our Lenten topics.

 

Invitation to Go Deeper

What are you learning about fasting, the intentional denial of something that is good so that you can experience a deeper communion with Christ? Consider how fasting affects your mind…your body…your soul. Is something coming to your awareness that could be a word from God?
 

Prayer for Reflection

Other texts from today’s lectionary:

• Psalm 95
• John 4:1-6