Notes from the Moderator: Mark Flory Steury

Lent- A Time for Renewal
Lent is a season when we focus on spiritual renewal. It’s a time of introspection, prayer, meditation and fasting. It’s a season when we reflect on Jesus’ final days on earth. It’s a time to think about discipleship, sacrifice and commitment. We remember all that Jesus did for us.

An important part of our Brethren heritage is the focus that has been placed on the combination of devotion and service. Pietism is a religious movement out of which the Church of the Brethren developed. This is how E. Ernest Stoeffler describes “Pietism” in the Brethren Encyclopedia:

“All of them were profoundly convinced of the need for the ‘new birth’, or the need for a thoroughgoing religious renewal of the individual. August Hermann Francke may be considered a spokesman when he wrote, ‘True faith is a divine work in us, which transforms us and bestows upon us the new birth from God, which kills the old Adam, and fashions us into a new person who is entirely different in heart, soul and mind.’ This personal renewal was then expected to exert a transforming influence upon the individual’s lifestyle, and through such transformed individuals, upon both church and society.”

Renewal is an important part of our lives as Christians. We need to continue to be open to the renewing of God’s Spirit in our lives and in our congregations. Out of renewal comes commitment to serving those around us. Francke stressed that spiritual renewal bears good fruits. Out of his focus on renewal, Francke went on to start orphanages, schools and homes for the aged.

My prayer is that we will continue to be renewed as individuals and congregations during this Lenten season. May we be renewed by God’s Spirit as we open ourselves anew to God’s grace and forgiveness. And may we with new passion and energy reach out to those around us in the name of Jesus.