lent at cg midtown

Click here for the Lent 2026 sermon series

Lent is a 40-day season of reflection and preparation leading to Resurrection Sunday. It begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Good Friday. In the early church, Lent was a time for new believers to prepare for baptism at Easter by learning the basics of the Christian faith.

Today, we enter Lent with that same purpose to return to what matters most in the life and teachings of Jesus. What is the good news? And can we trust that it is truly good, even when it challenges us?

Jesus’ ministry is often called “radical,” from a word that means “root.” The good news brings us back to our roots: loving our neighbor, caring for those in need, seeking justice and mercy, and resting in God’s grace. It is generous, joyful, and alive in the world.

Through prayer, fasting, and remembering the good news, we make space for spiritual renewal. These practices grow humility, repentance, and deeper trust in the Holy Spirit, allowing God to reshape our hearts.

Below are the practices we invite the Midtown congregation to take part in this Lent.

Lent began as a season to return to the core of our faith. It is a 40-day journey from Ash Wednesday to Good Friday that invites us back to the radical, good news of Jesus: God’s love for all people, love of neighbor, care for the vulnerable, justice, mercy, and grace. Through the practices of scripture reading, prayer and fasting, we make space for the Spirit to realign our hearts with this challenging and beautiful Good News.

This season, we invite the CG Midtown community to participate in the following practices:
- Use the Sanctified Art devotional, which follows the sermon texts and the Tell Me Something Good theme throughout Lent. You can pick up a hard copy of the Lent devotional booklet at the welcome desk or use an e-reader version of this year’s Lenten devotional. (In order to protect copyright, please refrain from sharing this link or posting it on social media.)
- Read through one of the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John). Use the Bible Reading Plan Generator to create a plan, and/or consider reading a Gospel straight through in one sitting.
- Pray and fast on Wednesdays for our mission partners and for specific needs of Indianapolis. CG Midtown’s mission states, “We call all people to be formed in the image of Jesus so we can love our neighbors in Indianapolis and around the world.” As we pray and fast, we ask that the Good News would encourage and sustain our mission partners and take root and bear fruit in Indianapolis. Each Wednesday during Lent, we invite you to join us in prayer and fasting. If you are subscribed to the weekly Midtown Connect newsletter, you will receive specific prayer requests by email every Wednesday morning. If fasting is new to you, click HERE for more information.
- Creative Good News art response. We invite our community to engage with our Creative Good News Art Response by writing down weekly good news as a way of intentionally expanding our gaze to the Kingdom that is always present and moving.