First Sunday of Lent (Sunday, 9 March 2025)

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Sundays of Hope and Joy

Those who have been following this devotional through the years have probably figured out our “vibe”—acoustic and reflective. This is an intentional choice meant to echo the themes of self-reflection and examination during the Lenten season. Sundays during Lent, though, are different.

This has to do with the way the Sundays of Lent are viewed by those who follow the liturgical seasons. In fact, if you do the math of Lent you find that Sundays literally don’t “count.” Lent is a 40-day journey, but if you look at a calendar and count from Ash Wednesday to the Saturday before Easter, you find that there are actually 46 days—and six of those days are Sundays.

The Sundays of Lent, while they are part of the Lenten season, are not considered to be part of the Lenten fast. In church tradition, these Sundays are traditionally thought of as “feast days.” Some refer to them as “mini-Easters,” and that’s a very apt phrase. They are the day the church gathers in worship and celebrates the saving grace of God in the proclamation of the Word, the lifting of praise, and the communal sharing in a remembrance of what Christ has done for us. On Sundays we all dwell richly in the story of God’s amazing love, and the joy of the resurrection cannot be completely ignored or else the story would be incomplete.

Still, the celebration of these “mini-Easters” is cast in a somewhat different light because of our journey. The themes of Lent are still there. The difference is that Sundays remind us where this journey is going. They help us remember that God is unfolding a much bigger plan. They offer us hope and joy.

That is our approach here during the Lenten Song Reflections—Sundays are all about hope and joy. On these days the “vibe” changes. May our hearts rejoice as we celebrate God’s promises!

Scripture for Meditation:

“Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand, and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. And not only that, but we also boast in our afflictions, knowing that affliction produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.”
—Romans 5:1-5 (NRSV)


Song: Great is His Mercy (lyrics here)

Questions for Reflection

What are some ways during this Lenten journey that you can mark Sundays as different, as days set apart to dwell in the hope of God shown in the cross and the empty tomb? Are there some Scriptures, prayers, songs, or other intentional practices you can build into these “mini-Easters” as a way of celebrating?

What do you think Paul means by “hope does not put us to shame?” What is the relationship between hope and shame, and how is that relationship important for us during our Lenten journey?

Spend some time reflecting on these words that appear in the chorus of today’s song. Sit with each for a bit, and offer your prayers of gratitude to God for the ways you’ve experienced them. Offer your prayers to God concerning those which may seem far off in this season of life. Offer your intercession to God on behalf of those who need to experience these attributes of God in a new way right now.

—Mercy
—Love
—Kindness
—Faithfulness
—Goodness

Fourth Day of Lent (Saturday, 8 March 2025)

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Saturday Reflections

On Saturdays during our Lenten Devotional time we sill simply sit with an instrumental version of a well-known hymn or worship song. Our weeks are so full, so busy, so noisy…use these Saturdays to prepare your hearts for gathered worship by reflecting on lyrics and Scripture in a space of stillness and simplicity.

Today’s hymn is the classic “Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling.” It came to mind while mulling over the image of repentance this week as a “turning.” It’s an image that calls to mind the Prodigal Son who repents of his sin and returns home to his father, fully aware that he has no reason to expect anything but rebuke and rejection. But we know how he is actually received—he is welcomed home as a beloved son.

May these words remind us all that the God who invites us into a journey of humility and repentance does so because more than anything, he desires to see his beloved children come home.


Scripture for Meditation:

One thing I asked of the Lord; this I seek: to live in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple.

For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
he will set me high on a rock.

Now my head is lifted up above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the Lord.
—Psalm 27:4-6 (NRSV)


Song: Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling Instrumental (lyrics after video)

Lyrics for Reflection

Read through the lyrics of this hymn slowly and prayerfully. Read them more than once, and pay attention to the movement of your soul as you pray. What words or phrases grab your attention? Why? As you finish, sit in prayerful silence before God and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you something of your need and God’s provision that emerges from these words.

(Please note: the lyrics are arranged to match this particular recording)

Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling
Calling for you and for me
See on the portals He's waiting and watching
Watching for you and for me

Why should we tarry when Jesus is pleading
Pleading for you and for me
Why should we linger and heed not His mercies
Mercies for you and for me

Come home come home
Ye who are weary come home
Earnestly tenderly Jesus is calling
Calling O sinner come home

(INSTRUMENTAL BREAK)

O for the wonderful love He has promised
Promised for you and for me
Tho we have sinned He has mercy and pardon
Pardon for you and for me

Come home come home
Ye who are weary come home
Earnestly tenderly Jesus is calling
Calling O sinner come home
Calling O sinner come home

Third Day of Lent (Friday, 7 March 2025)

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Words of Reflection

The word “repent” is often misunderstood, or at least understood in an incomplete way. For some it means simply acknowledging the truth of sin in our lives. For others it means feeling deep regret for our sin and its consequences. And still for others it means asking for forgiveness so that we no longer carry the weight of our sin.

All of these are part of the process we go through when we repent. But even as wonderful and transformative as each of these actions can be, they are incomplete in and of themselves. There is still one more thing that is needed before we can truly call it “repentance.”

In Acts 3 when the Apostle Peter speaks to those amazed by the healing of a lame beggar at the temple gate, he uses the opportunity to share with them the message of salvation, issuing this call:

“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.”—Acts 3:19 (NIV)

He pairs the idea of repenting with the physical act of turning: away from sin and towards the God who has power to set them free. The Greek word Luke uses here for “repent,” metanoeo, means to change one’s mind. It’s more than acknowledging our sin and being sorry for it, it’s making a conscious decision to leave it behind. It’s committing ourselves to God’s process of transformation in our lives and walking away from the things that hinder that growth.

This is a helpful image for us on our Lenten journey. The very nature of the season tells us our destination: the cross of Christ. But we are not only walking towards something, we are walking away from something as well. We are walking away from the “sin that so easily entangles” (Heb. 12:1), away from our old self and its rebellious ways. We walk away as a choice, an act of deliberate rejection of that which is unhealthy which then opens us to receive what God has for us.

The call to us goes beyond acknowledging, feeling remorse, and confessing. If we want to embrace true, biblical repentance, it also means we need to turn around and head the other way, the way of the Cross.

Scripture for Meditation:

Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near;
let the wicked forsake their way and the unrighteous their thoughts;
let them return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on them,
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
—Isaiah 55:6-7 (NRSV)

Song: Turn Your Eyes (lyrics here)

Questions for Reflection

What helps you to “turn your eyes” in your walk with Jesus? What can you do during this Lenten season to be more intentional about leaving behind habits, behaviors, and thought patterns that lead you away from God? How can you be more open to hearing his voice calling you back?

Repentance is not about guilt or shame, but so often when we address our sin we fall into those patterns so easily. How might we give the Holy Spirit more freedom in our lives to do the tender work of conviction in ways that lead to spiritual health, rather than falling victim to our own self-condemnation?

One seminary professor identified four components of repentance: 1) turning away from evil, 2) turning toward God out of love for God, 3) through faith in Jesus and his saving work, 4) so that one may receive the forgiveness of one’s sins. Spend some time reading each of those separately, slowly, and prayerfully. Note the movement of your heart and soul as you do so: what catches your attention? Is there one part in the journey of repentance that God is calling you to spend some time contemplating more deeply?

Second Day of Lent (Thursday, 6 March 2025)

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Words of Reflection

Repentance sits at the heart of our Lenten journey. It is perhaps the central theme of this season, as we seek to be cleansed and restored in preparation for our commemoration of Christ’s Passion. In countless Ash Wednesday services across the globe last night, the invitation to repent was given as we were reminded that we are “dead to sin and alive in Christ.” (Romans 6:11)

Following his temptation, the ministry of Jesus begins with a call to repent (Mark 1:15). The ministry of the disciples begins in a similar way, for when Peter is asked by the crowd on the day of Pentecost what they must do to be saved, he replies, “Repent and be baptized.” (Acts 2:38) The message of repentance is clearly foundational to the gospel. To follow Jesus fully, we must turn from sin and embrace the life he offers.

But far too often these days the call to repentance is presented as if it were an insistence on moral reform and behavior modification, so it’s no wonder it falls so often on deaf ears. The message so many hear from today’s church is that they are doing wrong things and if they would just stop doing them, then God would love them. What they receive is a message of shame, and what they do is simply walk away.

That is not biblical repentance. Biblical repentance is rooted in the love and mercy of God. It is not founded on our ability to change ourselves, it is founded on the supernatural ability of God to effect change in us by his Spirit. What it asks of us is humility and a willingness to be changed. What it asks of us is surrender, not to a wrathful God who will punish us if we don’t, but to a merciful God who stands ready to transform us into the people he desires us to be. Remember: it is his kindness that leads us to repentance (Romans 2:4).

One of the foundational texts for understanding repentance is Psalm 51, the prayer that David offers in response to his own sin being discovered. As you read it today, note the confidence David has in the grace and transforming power of God. Pay attention to his trust that God will take his contrite heart and restore it. David does not shy away from the reality of his sin or the gravity of it, but he also does not underestimate God’s ability to completely forgive.

Read this familiar psalm with fresh eyes, and see anew the love of God that calls us to repent and be cleansed.

Scripture for Meditation:

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy, blot out my transgressions.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.
Against you, you alone, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you are justified in your sentence and blameless when you pass judgment.

Indeed, I was born guilty, a sinner when my mother conceived me.
You desire truth in the inward being; therefore teach me wisdom in my secret heart.

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have crushed rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your holy spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and sustain in me a willing spirit.
Then I will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will return to you.

Deliver me from bloodshed, O God, O God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing aloud of your deliverance.
O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.

For you have no delight in sacrifice;
if I were to give a burnt offering, you would not be pleased.

The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.
—Psalm 51:1-17 (NRSV)

Song: Clean Heart (lyrics here)

Questions for Reflection

How do you understand “repentance?” What does it look like for you? What practices, prayers, and Scripture help you understand the call to repent?

Does the message of repentance point to the love of God for you? If not, what voices might be keeping you from seeing it in that way? Spend some time in prayer asking God to expand your understanding of repentance to see it as a response to his love and mercy.

The song for today contains the line “My life’s forever tethered to your grace.” What does that image mean for you? How have you experienced this “tether” in your life through the years? Spend some time offering to God your gratitude for all the ways he has bound you to his grace.

Ash Wednesday (5 March 2025)

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During this Lenten devotional we sit with worship songs both old and new that invite us into the themes of Lent: self-examination, humility, and repentance. There are so many good hymns and songs that reflect these themes, but each year I find there is only one that best begins our journey because it contains the important reminder that Lent is, first and foremost, an invitation. Some may view it as an obligation. Others may dismiss it as an empty ritual. But at its heart, Lent is all about God’s invitation to us.

On Ash Wednesday we begin a journey to the cross. Not because we deserve it. Not because we’ve earned it. Simply because we’re invited. God’s astounding grace calls to us in the midst of our brokenness and says, “Come.”

This is not a season of self-improvement or habit-crushing. It’s not a time when we try to “do better” and somehow inch a bit more towards perfection. Lent is a season of brutal honesty about the state of our souls. It’s a journey to the cross of Christ, where all pretense and posturing fail. Lent is a time when we acknowledge our deepest, most profound need: forgiveness. We are fallen, broken people who need a Savior, and during Lent we embrace the invitation to repentance.

What a beautiful truth it is that God does not expect us to “clean up our act” before coming to him. He is already aware of what we need. He knows what burdens us, what binds us, what imprisons us. The freedom we so desperately seek is available to us if we will simply acknowledge the truths about ourselves he already knows completely.

Come, ye weary, heavy laden
Lost and ruined by the fall
If you tarry till you're better
You will never come at all

Read the rest of the lyrics here.

Questions for Reflection

1) As Lent begins, what are ways you can mark the beginning of this journey? Is there a meaningful way you can visually or devotionally remind yourself of this daily invitation to “true belief and true repentance?”

2) Read this lesser-known verse from this hymn and spend some time reflecting on its meaning for you:

Let not conscience make you linger,
Nor of fitness fondly dream;
All the fitness He requires
Is to feel your need of Him.

3) Some feel that the focus of Lent is too “negative,” choosing instead to fast-forward to the empty tomb of Easter, or to ignore Lent completely. Do you sense any resistance within yourself to an honest journey of self-reflection? What might be at the root of any resistance you feel?

4) Read and reflect on this verse. Let it lead you into prayerful worship and gratitude:

“The saying is sure and worthy of full acceptance: that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the foremost.”—1 Timothy 1:15 (NRSV)

Lenten Song Reflections 2025

Music and Thoughts for Your Lenten Journey

Welcome to Lenten Song Reflections, a daily resource for your Lenten Journey from Abiding Way Ministries. Each day during Lent you will find a short reflection here based on a worship song, hymn, or other piece of music that echoes the themes of this season. It is our prayer that this resource will draw you into deep appreciation and worshipful gratitude for the sacrifice of Jesus as you reflect on the meaning of the cross over these 40 days.

Lent is a time of self-examination, humility, and repentance. Each of the songs offered will center on these invitations, and will be accompanied by a few thoughts and questions for refection. Use these in your personal devotions, or perhaps listen together with family members or friends, spending time in conversation afterwards.

Each song will be linked to an online opportunity to listen, and will be embedded in the post if possible. Due to the policies of some streaming sites, the song may be preceded by an advertisement, which is unfortunately out of our control. You may wish to mute the advertisement and sit in silence until the song begins.

You can also find the songs in our Lenten Song Reflections 2025 playlist on Spotify by clicking here. The songs will be added each day as the devotional continues. (Please note—due to song availability limitations the versions of songs used in the Spotify playlist may differ from those used in the devotionals)

God bless you as you draw near to him during this important season.

Palm Sunday (Sunday, 24 March 2024)

If you’re new to Lenten Song Reflections, click here to learn about it

Click here to follow the Lenten Song Reflections playlist on Spotify.
(please note—versions of songs on the playlist may differ from those used here)

Words of Reflection

During Holy Week we often face a temptation to “fast forward.” We normally talk about that in relation to the time between Good Friday and Easter, but there is another temptation to jump ahead that we face: moving too quickly from Palm Sunday to Good Friday.

This is our last “mini-Easter” before the real thing. And as we’ve learned on our Lenten journey, these are days of celebration. We may not embrace the Easter imagery in all of its fullness, but on these Sundays we remind ourselves that what is taking place is something amazing, wonderful, and worthy of praise. We remind ourselves that the cross we are journeying towards is not the place where the story ends. On these days we let our rejoicing be loud and real.

In that respect, the crowd welcoming Jesus into the city had it right. They may not have understood the real reason the Messiah had come, but they certainly recognized that the Messiah was in their midst. Their shouts confirm this:

“The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting,

‘Hosanna!’

‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’

‘Blessed is the king of Israel!’”—John 12:12-13 (NIV)

These are purposeful words. The shouts of Hosanna literally mean, “Save!” The imagery of palm branches is often linked to Messianic victory, and Jesus is referred to as “King" (and is even linked to King David in Mark’s account), all of which point to the crowd’s clear understanding that something historical is taking place. The Messiah has come to Jerusalem. The promised deliverance is about to be made real in their midst. Even if they don’t see clearly how it will take place, they at least see it.

And they celebrate.

The coming days are not for the faint of heart. They weren’t 2,000 years ago. They aren’t now. They are filled with anger, grief, injustice, false accusations, torture, and death. And we do well to meditate on them before we proclaim the fullness of the empty tomb.

But as we enter into this week, we also do well to celebrate what God is doing. So let’s welcome Jesus into our midst anew. Let’s throw the doors open wide and let the music play. On this mini-Easter, let songs of hope and joy lift our spirits, even as we know what the coming days hold. Because what they ultimately hold is our deliverance. The darkness is trembling, sin and death are facing their defeat, and the injustices that have defined humanity’s existence since the garden are about to meet their match.

We can celebrate that today.

Scripture for Meditation:

How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger who announces peace,
who brings good news, who announces salvation, who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”

Listen! Your sentinels lift up their voices, together they sing for joy;
for in plain sight they see the return of the Lord to Zion.

Break forth together into singing, you ruins of Jerusalem;
for the Lord has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem.

The Lord has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all the nations;
and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.
—Isaiah 52:7-10 (NRSV)

Song: Hosanna (Praise is Rising)

Praise is rising
Eyes are turning to You
We turn to You
Hope is stirring
Hearts are yearning for You
We long for You

'Cause when we see You
We find strength to face the day
In Your presence
All our fears are washed away, washed away

Hosanna hosanna
You are the God who saves us
Worthy of all our praises
Hosanna hosanna
Come have Your way among us
We welcome You here Lord Jesus

Hear the sound of
Hearts returning to You
We turn to You
In Your Kingdom
Broken lives are made new
You make us new

'Cause when we see You
We find strength to face the day
In Your presence
All our fears are washed away, washed away

Hosanna hosanna
You are the God who saves us
Worthy of all our praises
Hosanna hosanna
Come have Your way among us
We welcome You here Lord Jesus

Brenton Brown | Paul Baloche
© 2005, 2006 Integrity's Hosanna! Music; Thankyou Music

Questions for Contemplation:

Today we simply focus our time of contemplation on our celebration of this day:

-How will you celebrate today?
-What will you do today to rejoice at the coming of the Messiah?
-How will you shout “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” on this Palm Sunday?
-What makes you thankful and overflowing with praise at the arrival of Jesus?

Here are some additional celebration songs to help you enter into the joy of this important day:

Here’s a song that was written for Christmas, but pay attention to the lyrics and how they speak to our Lenten journey and especially Palm Sunday: