Lent 2026

Lent is traditionally a season of penitence and preparation.  Christians have for centuries fasted in order to give time to spiritually preparing themselves for the celebration of Easter.  For many modern Christians in the West, the fasting aspect has become token.  We give up chocolate biscuits or crisps as much for our waistlines as our observance of Lent, and often fail to give real extra attention to our spiritual growth.  Then, when we have a moment of weakness and have a chocolate hobnob in the second week of Lent, we end up feeling like we’ve failed and are probably no closer to God.

What if Lent could be something more genuinely helpful and more positive for our spiritual wellbeing?  We begin Lent by remembering Jesus’ withdrawing to the wilderness where he was tempted.  But Jesus regularly retreated to a quiet place to escape some of the pressures of life and connect more fully with the Father - often early in the morning, finding space alone to pray.  Our hope for this Lent is that we can use it to connect more fully with God, to think about our daily lives and where and when we make time for him.  Wouldn’t it be great if we arrived at Easter prepared to celebrate because we’ve used Lent to draw closer to God and to grow in faith?  

So, Lent will be a little different.  The preaching on Sunday mornings will be themed around looking after ourselves - addressing themes like making a rule of life (giving time to God each day), grief, and caring.  Each sermon will be made available after it has been preached with some ideas for your week and for further thought and prayer.  It’s not a drastic departure from a 'normal Lent' as giving God a little more of our time without just overloading ourselves, requires us to do a little less of some other things but we hope it will be genuinely useful.

On the first Sunday of Lent (22nd Feb) Rev Dave will be talking about making time for God and introducing the idea of creating a Rule of Life.  He's written a booklet that everyone will get a copy of to help us begin thinking about the everyday practices that may help us to draw closer to God this Lent.  You can download a copy of that booklet below.  

In addition to the Sundays, there will be some extra opportunities for new experiences, quiet reflection, and communal activities.  These are on the poster below.  

May we draw closer to God together this Lent.