Lent 2021

No matter the season, here’s what we know:

1) We are called to be a chorus of love
2) We are determined to reclaim our connection to the divine in positive and life-giving ways
3) We find our vitality (assert it, even!), together, in the beloved community

In this Lenten season, we are challenged by symbols new and old: the cross, the (Zoom) grid, and the mask.

On Ash Wednesday, a coal-colored cross compels us to confront our mortality. And too often, we are told that Jesus died for us, and atoned for our shortcomings, by taking up his cross. In this season, we choose to believe that Jesus lived in love, in order that we too might model God’s love in our own lives and communities. In this season, we choose to claim life in an old rugged cross. We do so with the confidence that life, just as much, if not even more so than death, can bear witness to resurrection.

 

This season, we choose to reclaim our relationship with God, and with one another. We don’t do so out of regret, or remorse, and especially not out of shame. We choose to believe that this season provides the opportunity and possibility to be the people God has called us to be.

For eleven months, we’ve donned our masks, and greeted one another on virtual grids. For too long, we’ve believed that masks and grids are like the ashes we spread on our foreheads – they remind us of our mortality, of what we’ve lost, and we’re all too ready to dismiss them, move on past them to happier days.

We believe it’s time to reclaim the symbols of 2020, and remake them in 2021. We believe the coming season of Lent offers the opportunity to take up crosses that bear love in life; to wear masks that lighten life, not darken it; to participate in grids that connect us instead of exhausting us.

So here’s your invitation. Come along, as we transform a barren cross, and a lifeless mask, and a familiar grid into reminders of a God who is still here, a people who can still be surprised, energized, and changed, and the beautiful resurrection, the LIFE that happens, when these two forces come together.

Here’s how you can join us in bringing life to this Lenten season:

A CROSS OF MANY COLORS:

During Lent, Sardis will reclaim life in the symbol of the cross through many colors of fabric. We will place a cross next to our road sign, and adorn it with a different fabric every day during the season of Lent. The varied colors will remind us the rich and diverse seasons of life. Passersby can see the change daily, or follow along on Instagram for daily updates by using the hashtag #CrossOfManyColors

SELFIE COLLAGE:

Sardis community members and extended church family are encouraged to share a selfie. Please send photos to the church email (info@sardisbaptistcharlotte.org) by March 15th. We will merge collected photos into a community collage, which will be sent to each household in poster form. This way, all your church buddies can live on your refrigerator or file cabinet, and add some liveliness into your days.

LENTEN ARTIST:

Amber Simpson, an artist and minister, who lives in Alabama, but has NC ties (Chowan College) will join our Lenten efforts. Amber will be working on a collection of images, which will be incorporated into our weekly worship and weekday devotionals. You can read more about Amber in Sardis People in the March edition of Signposts.

SIDEWALK CROSSES:

During Holy Week, congregants will be invited to come to the Sardis grounds on their own schedule, and draw pastel crosses with sidewalk chalk on our walkways and parking lots. We’ll greet Spring and Easter will a rainbow of colors. More details to come.

HOMEMADE CROSSES:

Congregants are encouraged to make their own crosses (of any size), and display them in their homes, or in their background feeds on Zoom meetings. Simply take households items and transform them into meaning: cereal boxes, twigs and branches from your yard, yarn, popsicle sticks, construction paper, even duct tape will work. If you really like your cross, share it on social media with the hashtag #CrossOfManyColors

BE BRIGHT BY WEARING/DISPLAYING BRIGHT:

Bring on your pastels and bright colors! Consider wearing life-giving colors when you join Zoom meetings, or use backgrounds that make us smile. This is our chance to reclaim Zoom and other virtual spaces as outlets of light, joy, peace, and hope. See more HERE.

READ SIGNPOSTS, SOCIAL POSTS, AND WEEKLY EMAILS:

The staff will provide ongoing communications to keep you up to date on all things Lent 2021. Check your email and social accounts as you are able; join the conversations with comments, likes, and shares when you can; reach out to the staff and diaconate with any questions