Twisted Christian

This year for Lent I gave up my “lust for gear.” I decided I would stop spending so much time dreaming about basses, amps, effects and all that other wonderful stuff that comes along with being a gear head. For those not familiar with the term, GAS or Gear Acquisition Syndrome is the more commonly known form of “lust for gear.” I would spend hours thinking about the next bass I wanted to buy, like that Custom Shop 1968 reissue Fender P bass...$2500 of pure beauty. It played like butter, and sounded like liquid smoothness pouring out of the amp. I’d dream about bigger and better amps, 1500W of pure pounding low-end coming out of an 8x10 and 2x15; enough power to make the souls of anyone standing in front of it throb. Or even the new effect that I wanted to try out, Boss’ Octaver, or a nice muff or overdrive, and maybe even some distortion. Nothing I’d actually use in any capacity with what I’m involved in, but it’s just so much fun to think about and play with.

So I gave all of that up. Most people use Lent as a time to sacrifice something that they would miss, and whenever they missed it they would think about God. This year, I realized that Lent is more than that, it is about giving up something that is getting between me and God; something that is keeping my relationship from growing. So I chose something that I spend a fair amount of time doing, and gave it up for 40 days, 40 days that are almost up.

The first couple of weeks were tough and made me realize just how much time I used to spend on my GAS. I would spend hours surfing talkbass.com; the premier forum for bass players worldwide. I would surf the classifieds, looking at the cool shit people were selling, browse the reviews for the latest amps and basses, and follow the debates about picking vs. finger-style. I would go to the music store after work some days and look at the basses and dream. I would try out some new effects pedal, and look at the massive amount of power the new amps could produce.

So with all of this free time on my hands, I realized I could start doing things I otherwise didn’t have time for. I started spending more time practicing my bass playing instead of just reading about it. I started reading more. And I started this blog. By giving up all the time I spent lusting for stuff, I found I had more time to devote to God and to learning more about my faith, and growing in Christ. It caught me off guard at first, this growth. I didn’t realize that what I had given up for Lent was actually bringing me closer to God. Sure that was the initial idea, but I didn’t actually think about it. This blog is the result of my sacrifice, and it is turning out to be a real blessing. I have started learning about new concepts and ideas. I’ve started reading cool things people have to say about the Christian faith. I’ve come to the conclusion that by spending all this time writing and reading, I am going to be a much better student when I eventually go back to school, and a much more knowledgeable pastor when I’m done.

So many good things have come from my Lenten sacrifice, and I think that is the point of Lent. It is an opportunity to grow closer to Him, and it’s so cool to see how that has happened over the past 37 days. Now the question poses itself, if we give up something for Lent that is getting between us and God, then shouldn’t we continue to sacrifice it? Shouldn’t it stop becoming a sacrifice and just become natural? For me, with all the growth that’s happened, the answer seems obvious. But does that apply to everyone? I’m not talking about those people that gave up coffee, or cheese, or some random thing that they like to use it as a reason to think of God. I’m talking about people, and sacrifices of things that are getting in the way of their relationship with Him. Shouldn’t these things be given up forever?

For example, Todd has been suffering from a porn addiction and it is getting in the way of his relationship with Christ. He decided that beginning Ash Wednesday, he would not look at any porn for 40 days. If, during Lent, Todd finds things improving due to his absence from porn, wouldn’t it make sense that he should continue this trend past the end of Lent?

It would make sense that if you have given something up for Lent that has been impeding your relationship with God that you would continue to give it up after Lent is over.

Now I’m not denying the importance of the sacrifice that others make for Lent. Those that give up things that are important to them like coffee, video games, junk food etc., if done for the right reasons, can also get also reap the benefits of growing closer to God through this sacrifice. These types of sacrifices are great for providing regular reminders that it is Lent, and that something is being sacrificed, but I don’t think they have the same long term effect that giving up something that is actually interfering with your relationship with Him, and continuing to give it up after Lent is over.

God has used Lent to teach me a lot, and I am thankful for those lessons. I am going to continue to reign in my GAS, and use that time to further my spiritual growth. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still in need of a solid 4 string and an additional 15” cab would make a wonderful addition to my rig, but I am not going to spend copious amounts of time obsessing about it, and endless hours researching something I’m not going to buy anytime soon anyway. When I do decide to make a purchase I will spend the time to do the proper research, but until then I have better things to spend my time on.