The Discipline of Lent, Part I

With Lent having begun yesterday, I thought I would begin a series of posts that cover the Discipline of Lent.

What do I mean by discipline? Well, one of the things that is so amazing about Lent is that in this season we hear "our Lord's call to intensify our struggle against sin, death, and the devil— all that prevents us from trusting in God and loving each other" (Maundy Thursday litany). One of the ways we carry out that struggle against sin death and devil is by exercising the Discipline of Lent.
The Discipline of Lent is four-fold: repentance, fasting, prayer and works of love (alms).
These four areas of our Christian Discipleship become the specific occasions and opportunities for spiritual renewal during this season of renewal. Living out a discipline takes our Lord's words about self-denial seriously (Matthew 16:24). Through discipline, we find freedom and grace, just as parental discipline is loving and brings a child to freedom and righteousness (Hebrews 12:3-13). In the Lenten Discipline, we focus our lives on Christ's self-sacrificing passion, death and resurrection, which has brought us forgiveness, reconciliation, and redemption by God.
Today we'll tackle the first Lenten Discipline: repentance
Repentance Repentance means turning 180 degrees away from sin to walk toward God. Repentance includes an examination of our lives and our actions in light of God's grace and love, which comes to us free and undeserved through Christ's death and resurrection. St. Paul tells us that we have been joined to Christ's death and resurrection through our dying to sin and rising to new life in Holy Baptism (Romans 6:3-4). Repentance therefore also means returning to our Baptism, remembering our Baptism, and living in that Baptism.
Here are some ways in which we can make that return to our Baptism through the Discipline of Repentance this Lententide:

1. Remember your Baptism each day when you rise and before you retire by placing a small bowl of water in your bedroom, dipping your fingers in it and making the sign of the cross while saying the Invocation: "In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen."
2. Having attended the Ash Wednesday Liturgy to begin your Lent in repentance, having received the sign of ashes upon your forehead as a sign of repentance and renewal, continue to attend the midweek services as an intentional act of turning away from your sins toward the love of Christ crucified.
3. Attend the Divine Service each Sunday to repent of your signs and receive absolution "from the pastor as from God Himself" (Small Catechism).
4. During your daily prayers, examine your life in light of the Ten Commandments and ask God to forgive you and to lead you into ways of loving him and your neighbor more deeply.
5. Take advantage of private confession with your pastor. If there are not posted hours for private confession, call your pastor to make an appointment with him. In preparation, read Luther's instruction on confession in the Small Catechism.
6. If there is conflict or tension between you and someone else in your life, seek to resolve it so that it does not become a stumbling block to your faith and spiritual growth.
7. Attend the Holy (Maundy) Thursday liturgy to receive a final individual absolution of your sins, in order to close out this season of repentance and renewal.
8. Renew your Baptismal vows at the Easter Vigil on Holy Saturday as final preparation for the great 50 days of celebrating the Easter victory.