What Lent Really Means

Every spring, the word Lent resurfaces.

You may notice a smudge of ash on someone’s forehead. A friend announces they are giving up coffee or social media. A church calendar shifts in tone more reflective, more solemn. And if you didn’t grow up observing it, you might quietly wonder: What is Lent actually about?

Lent is not a trend. It is not a spiritual detox plan. And it certainly is not about earning God’s approval.

At its heart, Lent is about preparing your soul for Easter.

The Short Version

Lent is a 40-day season of repentance, fasting, and prayer leading up to Easter Sunday. It begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Holy Saturday, the day before Resurrection Sunday.

The number 40 is deeply biblical. Jesus fasted for 40 days in the wilderness before beginning His public ministry (Matthew 4:1–11). Moses spent 40 days on Mount Sinai. Israel wandered 40 years in the desert. Throughout Scripture, 40 marks a period of testing, preparation, and transformation.

Lent echoes that rhythm. It is a deliberate slowing down a spiritual recalibration that invites believers to confront sin, renew devotion, and reflect on the cross before celebrating the empty tomb.

In a world of constant noise, Lent calls us to pay attention.

Where Did Lent Come From

Lent traces back to the early centuries of the church. By the second and third centuries, Christians were already practicing seasons of fasting and preparation before Easter. Over time, a 40-day structure became more widely recognized, particularly through Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox traditions.

That history sometimes makes Lent feel exclusively “Catholic.” Yet the impulse behind it repentance, prayer, and preparation before celebrating Christ’s resurrection is profoundly biblical.

Throughout church history, seasons of fasting and prayer have often preceded renewal. Even during the Protestant Reformation, while some reformers resisted ritual formalism, they did not reject the call to repentance and spiritual examination.

The point was never the calendar itself.

The point was the heart.

Today, Lent is observed across many traditions, including Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican, Lutheran, Methodist, and even some evangelical congregations.

What Happens During Lent

Though practices vary, three historic disciplines define Lent: fasting, prayer, and almsgiving.

Fasting

Fasting during Lent traditionally meant abstaining from meat on Fridays a practice still followed in Catholic communities worldwide. According to recent surveys, tens of millions of Christians continue some form of Lenten fasting each year.

Today, many believers choose to give up something that occupies their attention sweets, entertainment, alcohol, social media, streaming platforms.

But fasting is not about self-improvement. It is about dependence.

Every time you feel the absence of what you gave up, you are reminded of a deeper hunger. Jesus said in Matthew 4:4, “Man shall not live by bread alone.” Lent teaches us to feel that truth in our bodies.

Prayer

Lent invites increased intentionality in prayer. Some follow daily Scripture readings aligned with the church calendar. Others attend midweek services or reflect on Christ’s journey to the cross through practices like the Stations of the Cross.

Prayer during Lent is often marked by confession and humility. Psalm 51 David’s prayer of repentance becomes especially fitting.

It is a season to ask hard questions:

Where have I drifted?

What needs surrender?

Have I lost my first love?

Giving

The third discipline almsgiving is sometimes overlooked but deeply significant. Historically, believers redirected money saved through fasting toward the poor.

Generosity guards fasting from becoming self-focused. Isaiah 58 reminds us that true fasting involves loosening the bonds of injustice and sharing bread with the hungry.

Lent turns us outward as well as inward.

Ash Wednesday and the Weight of Dust

Ash Wednesday begins Lent with stark clarity.

In many churches, a minister traces ashes in the shape of a cross on each forehead and says, “Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”

Those ashes often come from palm branches used the previous year on Palm Sunday a striking reminder of how praise can quickly give way to crucifixion.

Ash Wednesday confronts mortality.

In cultures where death is often sanitized and hidden, this moment is jarring. According to global health data, despite rising life expectancy in many nations, death remains universal and unavoidable. Scripture never lets us forget that truth.

Genesis 3:19 declares humanity’s return to dust. Ash Wednesday forces us to face it not to induce fear, but to awaken wisdom.

Psalm 90:12 prays, “Teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.”

Lent begins by reminding us that life is fragile and therefore precious.

Do Christians Have to Observe Lent

There is no biblical command requiring Christians to observe Lent. Romans 14:5 affirms freedom in observing special days: “Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind.”

Lent is a practice, not a requirement.

Historically, some Protestant communities hesitated to embrace it, concerned that ritual observance might drift into legalism the subtle belief that spiritual effort earns grace.

That caution is wise. Lent can become performative. Public declarations of what we are giving up can morph into quiet self-congratulation.

But when practiced humbly, Lent is not about earning anything.

It is about remembering everything.

Grace is never achieved through fasting. It is received at the cross.

Why Lent Still Matters

Easter is not simply a spring holiday. It is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. The apostle Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15 that if Christ has not been raised, our faith is futile.

And yet many believers rush into Easter Sunday without reflection. We move from ordinary weeks to resurrection celebration without lingering at the cross.

Lent refuses to rush.

It invites us to sit in the betrayal of Maundy Thursday.

To stand beneath the cross on Good Friday.

To feel the silence of Holy Saturday.

Only then does Easter morning land with full weight.

You cannot fully celebrate resurrection if you have not faced death.

Lent does not manufacture sorrow it uncovers what is already true. Christ suffered. Christ died. And because of that, Christ rose.

In a culture allergic to sacrifice, Lent is countercultural. In a society that avoids mortality, Lent is honest. In a world addicted to distraction, Lent is intentional.

And perhaps that is why it still resonates.

Paying Attention to the Cross

Ultimately, Lent is not about what you give up.

It is about whom you draw near.

It is about recovering awe at the cross and anticipation for the empty tomb. It is about slowing down long enough to remember what your faith is built upon.

If you have never observed Lent, you are free. But you might consider setting aside time this season even if informally to fast, to pray, to give, to reflect.

Not to earn grace.

But to pay attention to it.

If this helped clarify Lent for you, share it with someone curious about the season or subscribe to our newsletter for more biblical reflections as we journey toward Easter.