I prepare for Lent like most people prepare for New Year’s Day. In fact, my husband and I decided one of the new commitments we are making for Lent way back in the fall, and I’ve been looking forward to it ever since.
Looking forward to sacrifice?
Oh, yes.
Lent is the best time of year for me, because I always refocus and recenter on God, so much more so than the rest of the year when I’m typically not only falling off the horse, but holding onto the horse’s tail for dear life as it tries to gallop away from me.
I need Lent.
Every time.
Ash Wednesday is just over a week away. Have you prayed about what God is calling you to do this year?
I always told my third graders to choose three things to do, one in each category of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, the tradition set by the Church.
Fasting does not have to be from food; it can be to sacrifice anything (like complaining) or abstain from non-food vices (like when I gave up Twitter last year). The point is to develop and sustain your self-control, however God wants you to practice it.
Almsgiving also does not have to be monetary. Any sort of service for the Lord is giving alms, as long as it’s done out of love for Him. You might look into a new volunteer opportunity, or simply commit to spending special time with each of your children.
Here are some of the Lenten gems from the archives at KS to get you thinking:
- On Lenten sacrifices (why we do it)
- First time giving up all white sugar
- Can You Decorate for Lent? (as many of you know, we’re selling our house this spring, so I’m disappointed that I won’t be able to allow the house to enter into the season of Lent. I don’t think potential buyers need to be wondering why there’s purple cloth on the door…my decorations will have to be interior only this year!)
- The “What are you Doing for Lent?” Carnival from last year – lots of inspiration from amazing women!
- Celebrating Lent with Children (some amazing ideas here that I need to read through again)
And how about what I’m doing this year?
Believe me, I need each and every one of these:
- Curb my sweet tooth, which has been rampant lately in spite of the fact that I should have motivation to eat exceptionally well. No white sugar of any kind again this year, and I’m considering doing Donielle’s Sugar Detox (look down in the right sidebar if you want to sign up), which would wean me from even natural sugars like honey.
- No grains, at least for the first two weeks. Then we might transition back to non-gluten grains like we did in the fall. My husband’s digestive system needs this boost again after the holiday season, and we’re dragging our poor 5-year-old along to see if gluten-free improves his eczema, which is still mild, but twice as bad as it’s ever been. I don’t want to risk him messing up his insides if it’s something I can figure out how to avoid. (Yes, this will interrupt the Seeking the Perfect Homemade Whole Wheat Bread series, but it’s probably time for a little break before finishing up anyway.)
- 10 minutes of special time with both children individually, every day. We all need this structure so I don’t get to bedtime stories and realize I’ve been running all day and haven’t spent quality time with my dearest blessings.
- What for prayer? I haven’t decided that one yet…it needs to be something structured and manageable, because there’s not much of that going on in this arena right now.
- I pondered giving up Twitter again, but I don’t know if that’s a wise business move. I pondered posting only 3 times per week and was almost attached to that one when I started planning my March posts calendar and had so many things to say. I’m starting to think I just need to set a bedtime and waking time and stick to them, no matter what. This may end up in some no-post days, which might teach me to prioritize when I sit down to work. OR I could commit to always praying X minutes before sitting down at the computer. Maybe both. Thoughts? Counsel?
I’m excited that the beans book will at least be in time for Friday meatless meals to help people out of the cheese pizza/meatless spaghetti rut.
How about it, ladies and gents: what are you contemplating for Lent this year? How will you stretch and challenge yourself?
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I’m thinking about going on GAPS for Lent this year. It is definitely a diet of self-deprivation and it’s something I think I might need to do, and I think the penance/offering up aspect of Lent will help me stick with it.
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oh my goodness, this year is flying by. Lent??? Good grief, I haven’t even thought of Lent yet!
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I have gotten away from my daily rosary. I believe that making this a priority during Lent, will be a very good for myself and my children.
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Thanks for posting this! I needed to start preparing for lent, and I can’t believe is is almost here already! This year, we are trying as a family to follow a real food diet with no grains, beans, sugars, etc. Still trying to figure out other sacrifices… my most challenging to date was giving up my dishwasher, but we’ve had a couple more kids since then, so I’m not sure it is feasible time wise with the amount of dishes we have!
We also try to do some type of service related activity each week during Lent so the kids can learn about giving of their time and talents. Dh and I will try to get to confession weekly and are thinking or working through “Introduction to the Devout Life” together.
For fasting, we are considering a 16 hour fast on all Fridays, and of course, still abstaining from meat.
Thanks for the post!
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thanks for posting this! i’m not from a tradition that emphasizes Lent, though my hubs and i began celebrating a couple years ago. i’m interested to check out some of the links you included.
this year, i’m giving up refined sugar (not quite sure how technical to be with that though, since i can’t make ALL our food from scratch right now…) and will focus on prayer for the persecuted church in Iran because our local church is focusing some efforts toward that area of the world.
i like some of your other ideas, too. maybe i will do a media fast from FB. still need to pray through this obviously, but am excited for the celebration!
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I just finished making some no sew lace scrap roses to help my little one say the rosary with me, which I am hoping will become a daily habit. I’m also thinking I’ll do 40 bags in 40 days again. I really, really need to work on fasting, though. It is such a struggle for me, both on a spiritual and a physical level. I’m not exactly sure how I’ll handle it this year, but I’m hoping to figure something out.
[P.S. - that jumping up and down and clapping and cheering that you heard a bit ago was me reacting to the bit about you going to bed at a set time. :>)]
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I have always liked the idea of giving something up for Lent, but I’m not sure what’s feasible this year. I am about to have our third child (due date is March 17th) and not sure what makes sense to change at this point. Anything that requires more food prep or specific food “regulations” is probably not do-able, especially since we may have others bringing us meals for part of the time. And my schedule will be changing quite a bit as a result of taking care of the new baby anyway, so I don’t know what it really makes sense to change there. Maybe more times of prayer…I can probably do that while nursing…let me know if you have any ideas for me
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Katie Reply:
March 3rd, 2011 at 5:10 am
Jenni,
Katie
New moms and pregnant women, in my book, always get a pass on any food sacrifices! I think we get to focus more on prayer, exactly as you said, or perhaps cutting candy or something that wouldn’t be good for baby anyway if you happen to have a habit of that. People I know have “given up” complaining, television or certain shows, and so many other non-food things. New mamas are in a great place to keep a Bible or spiritual book by their nursing chair and try to read instead of watch TV or check email. Pray about it and I’m sure you’ll hit upon the perfect focus for your Lent!
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i’ve done this twice before for lent and plan to do it again, it’s really impacted my life! for me it’s in both categories of prayer and sacrifice:
when i go for a run or a walk it’s MY private time… i daydream or plan things, i love it. but for lent i give up “my own thoughts” during this time and instead focus on praying. i pray for everyday things, but i’ve also prayed for specific people that i might not have otherwise with some surprising results.
it’s not easy, i often find myself being sidetracked, especially by daydreams, but it’s worth it.
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Thanks for the inspiring ideas! I am a member of my Episcopal parish’s vestry, and we’re in a season of serious discernment ending right after Easter, so that is my main focus and includes more prayer and self-evaluation. The vestry washes the feet of parishioners on Maundy Thursday, so I am looking forward to that, in a way, and looking for similar opportunities to serve those I love.
My six-year-old and I discussed this morning what we might do for Lent. Similar to writing our acts of service on pieces of “hay” to fill the manger during Advent (thank you so much for that idea!), we toyed with the thought of writing our sins and tacking them to a cross…but would we be inspired to sin more, to make it look good? Better not go that route!
I like Lenetta’s idea of 40 bags and intend to do some decluttering!
I cleaned up my article on ideas for environmental stewardship Lenten disciplines on my new site, and it now has a link to my diary of giving up buying imported things last year.
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juliette Reply:
March 5th, 2011 at 3:40 pm
First time on this blog, but I was inspired by this post and ‘Becca’s comment about putting the sins on the cross. Maybe if you covered the cross with all of your sins, or all of the sins you can think of and everytime you said a prayer, avoided a sin, did something generous, DIDN’T complain even though you felt like it, etc (I hope you get the idea) you take a sin OFF….so that as you go through Lent you get closer to seeing Jesus??
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Katie Reply:
March 7th, 2011 at 1:43 am
Juliette,
Katie
What a great idea! Thank you for sharing!
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I’m praying and wrestling with what to do for Lent this year. I, too, look forward to paring down and refocusing myself towards God. Part of me thinks I should give up coffee & coffee products….doesn’t matter to me whether it’s caf or decaf, it seems as if returning to work in Sept. led me to suddenly “need” coffee every morning. That fact that I feel I “need” it, leads me to think I need to remember that all I “need” is God.
Another part of me thinks I should find a greater sacrifice. We’re on year #3 of a very difficult financial situation so we’ve already eliminated spending, extras and pared down financially….therefore I’m really stumped. I believe what I give up should be something that has become a distraction from God, but for some reason I can’t pinpoint what is distracting me from Him. Clearly I need more prayer on this!
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Last year for Lent I gave up self pity. We were going through a difficult time in our lives, and I found that I was feeling very sorry for myself. It was a wonderful Lent season without all that “poor me” stuff. I’m not sure what I’ll sacrifice this year. I’m asking God to show me…
I really like the extra ideas of prayer and alsmgiving (I’m not from a catholic background, so I didn’t know about these) That is more to ponder.
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I wish you would spend more time reading your Bible to see that this is not biblical. This is another religious tradition that the Bible warns against. This puts the focus on you and what you are giving up when Jesus already made the only sacrifice for sin once and for all. Please realize it before it’s too late.
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Katie Reply:
March 12th, 2011 at 8:48 pm
Grace,
Katie
I don’t do “Bible alone,” but also appreciate the Magisterium and Tradition. Check Col 1:24 about Jesus’s sacrifice and our participation in it.
Thanks for your concern though!
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