Story Behind Imago Tradition of Fasting Wednesdays During Lent
GINA GANSCHOW
As Lent approaches, I continue to be grateful for a church that honors a variety of practices. Lent is a season that gives us an opportunity to reflect and to honor these rituals. Fasting has been important at Imago since early on. I asked a few friends to help jog my memory of how this practice progressed over time. From what we can remember (is it brain fog or just normal forgetfulness?), the leadership team committed to fasting until dinner on Wednesdays during Lent in the early days of Imago. They felt that this was a good way to dedicate themselves to praying for our church and our community as a team. Later, when the church was meeting downtown at the Gateway Building and then at the church on Arcadia, Imagoans were invited to fast until dinner and then to break the fast together at a nearby restaurant. After that, for several years, we gathered here in the Parkview Hall on Wednesday evenings during lent for a short service and soup. It was wonderful to gather with friends and check in mid-week while the little ones ran around and entertained themselves. Fasting allowed us to focus our prayers on our community and on discerning where to be the hands and feet of Christ. It was a time to sit in some degree of want (our hunger) and recognize that there are many who experience scarcity on a regular basis. There was always something so powerful in knowing that we were practicing fasting as a group.
This year, we hope that you find this practice powerful as well. For many, the past year has been a very lonely one. Even though we will not be able to break our fast in one building as a group, we do invite you to come together with your fellow Imagoans and fast until dinnertime on Wednesdays during Lent. Lent begins on February 17th—Ash Wednesday. If you would like to carry on the tradition of making soup, we will be sharing some recipes to hopefully give you some inspiration (Panera is acceptable as well). In whatever way you would like to experience this spiritual practice, we invite you to do so. All are welcome.
Justin and Gina Ganschow live in Dunlap with their son, Jude. Gina is a warrior who has successfully directed surgeons through her two awake brain tumor surgeries in 2015 and 2018 and has completed 14 of 18 chemo treatments. She’s also a school psychologist. Justin is awed by her incredible strength to get through every day and her compassion for others. He helps manage a safety culture and leadership consulting business with the mission of “impacting lives and bringing out the best in people.”