Last night I shaved my head. OK, well, I did it on an impulse and had been thinking about it for some time and thought, "Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, what better time is there to do this again?" So, what does this have to do with Lent? Well, not a lot, but it is just something I thought I would share. I did it for a personal act, but thought of the benefit for the time so I may focus that time on other things and would not have to pay someone else to do it for me. Lent is the coming of Spring in which things have died off, but new sprouts arise. Each day we are called as Christians to some sort of transformation. Paul calls us in Romans 12:2 to the "renewal of your mind" in a trans-formative way that does not conform to the standards that the world has established. That is the Lenten journey, to shed the unnecessary impediments of this world to make space for more of Christ in you and in your life.

I am so thankful for the changes that my Lord is making in me, but I am far from complete and sometimes there are strong outward changes, like the shaving of my head, but more often the changes are subtle. I believe the same will be true with you. It is great to know that it does not happen all at once and is not even expected to happen in such a way, but as we are slowly set apart from the worldly things though we are not meant to be removed from it (certainly we must stay in as long as it does not suck us into the complacency and sin that fills up our space for Christ and makes us ineffective as witnesses). To not to be conformed is that we are not to allow for the world to form us into what fits, but to be formed in Christ in such that we stand out as being different. This does not mean that we should act as if we are better than others or those that don't know Jesus Christ, but we should seek to serve them. One aspect of the Christian faith that throughout history has been an evangelistic faith in nature was the way in which they served those in need. When plagues would come and all the other "healthy" people would leave, it was the Christians who stayed and cared for the people.  Our faith is one that transforms and as we are transformed we in turn affect and influence others that allows for a transformation.

This Lent be transformed so that you may be a catalyst for transformation of others in Christ Jesus.