TN50 #61, Lent and a Stop Buffering Challenge, 28 Feb 2022
Hi Team,
Happy Monday and welcome to The Next 50 #61. We all buffer, buffering is when we use external things to change how we feel inside.
- You just received a meeting invite from your least favorite coworker, and you find yourself grabbing a honey bun out of the vending machine.
- Your spouse just reminded you of the 3 things you already know you aren’t doing right, and you spend 2 hours scrolling on social media way after your “digital sunset”
- Your parents didn’t love you, and you spend your entire adult life trying to take over the world to prove you are worthy.
Break, Break, major subject shift
The season of Lent is right around the corner, for you non-Jesus people you can get the gist of what Lent is here. My one sentence version is the following. Now days, Lent is a 40-day fasting window (from certain foods, drinks, behaviors, etcetera) between Ash Wednesday and Easter that gives Christians a more focused opportunity to try and “become a little Christ” C.S. Lewis say it better here.
One way to do this is by fasting from things you normally enjoy, like the way Jesus fasted completely for 40-days in the desert. Many people use Lent as a time to give up things they enjoy, a little too much (or a lot). I fall into this category normally, and as I deal with all the “thoughts and feelings” drama of not having a beer or whatever for 40-days I will have more time and opportunity to focus on Christ and allow Him to work on me.
OK, now I’m going to mash it all together
What if we all took the 2022 celebration of Lent to give up our primary “buffers”? No donuts, no social media and yes, no taking over the world. Better yet what if we all gave up 2 or 3?
For those of you who are not followers consider it a 40-day (sugar, social media, whatever) detox. For you fellow Jesus’ People use the time to prepare for Easter. Remember, Christmas doesn’t mean anything without Easter!
The other part of this is to sit with and explore the discomfort of not using your go to buffer(s). Which means not just adding new buffers to your list. This will be powerful for all who participate so make sure to keep a journal.
No matter what calendar you choose to follow Lent starts in a few days, join me in celebration and stop buffering! I am starting on Ash Wednesday,
Christian or Not, don’t waste this opportunity to do something hard that will ultimately make you better. As always, please share your thoughts and share this with your team or anyone who might find it useful.
Have a good one, Alex
2022 Murph Count: 36
