The pastor took a wrong step. I read about his accident in a yellowing El Paso Times blurb. The road was busy. He was a school master and retired pastor and was going home and then he was gone in the speed of a car. A screech, pain, blood and he was sent home to the God he followed throughout his life.
A primary theme of our current liturgical season, Lent, is repentance. Unfortunately, we have come to think of repentance in a narrow way — as experiencing guilt and remorse for our mistakes. This is not what the word meant in the original Greek, and probably not what Jesus meant when he used it in this context. Rather, in the original Greek, the word “repent” meant to go beyond the mind that you have.
Traditionally, in the Christian tradition, Lenten observance has included a variety of practices including prayer, fasting and abstinence, penance and almsgiving. The goals of these practices are to experience spiritual awakening, purification and renewal.
I’ll be honest , I do not think giving up soda or coffee is an effective way to allow God to manifest in our lives. Sorry, depriving your body of caffeine for 40-something days probably will not lead to a greater devotion to God. If anything, it will lead to distraction based on one’s constant desire for coffee.