Monday, February 17, 2014

10 Ideas for Your Lenten Journey

With Ash Wednesday a mere two weeks away, I'm looking for a good Lenten sacrifice or devotion to deepen my faith - something that speaks to where I am in my spiritual journey. I love that we have a season to reflect on humbling and improving ourselves in anticipation of Easter. We enter Lent as a slightly different person from who we were the year before, so our sacrifice should reflect our current shortcomings.

I've put together some ideas that I've done or heard of. Thanks to those who contributed! Please share your own in the comments.

10 ideas for Lent

  1. Spend 10 minutes a day in silence, listening to God. I did this in college one year and learned a lot from stopping my day to focus on God. I never had an agenda - no petitions or recited prayers. Instead, I took the approach of, "So, God - what do you want to talk about today?" Through these 10 minutes, I learned a lot about where I was falling short as well as why the Church stuck to specific teachings.
  2. Participate in 40 hours of service. A friend just told me she wanted to do this - and I think it's a great idea! It would take a lot of advanced planning to complete all 40 hours in 8 weeks, but it's doable.
  3. Limit self-indulgent time. This could be watching mindless TV, checking Facebook, or reading novels. For me last year, it was long showers. I cut down my shower time from half an hour to 15 minutes. That may still seem like a long time, but it was hard for me. I love taking a long time to wake up in the morning and relax in a hot shower.
  4. Say the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary every day. Can you imagine how powerful Holy Week and Easter would be if you took the time to reflect on Christ's passion so often?
  5. Write and mail 40 letters - each to a different friend or family member. Sharing our appreciation for others can help to put our lives in perspective.
  6. Listen only to Christian music. Switch that radio to a Christian station in the car as a daily reminder of what's important. I did this one year for Lent and rarely listen to regular radio anymore!
  7. Read Fr. Robert Barron's daily Lenten reflection. This I am definitely doing! He's such an inspiring speaker. You can sign up here: http://www.lentreflections.com/#.Uvtpsi1mgNA.facebook.
  8. Meditate on the gospels 20 minutes a day. I know I keep talking about this, but it bears repeating - it has been great for my spiritual journey. Read more about the benefits I've discovered here.
  9. Stop snoozing the alarm. Get up the first time the alarm goes off. It's supposed to be better for your energy level, and it'll build self-discipline.
  10. Attend daily mass. How can we go wrong gathering together to receive Jesus each day?! Or you could go to Stations of the Cross every Friday.

What ideas would you add?

6 comments:

  1. These are some great ideas - for both protestants and catholics alike! Thanks for linking up with the Faith and Fellowship blog hop!

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  2. I was just thinking today about what I want to do for Lent. I love the 40 letters idea. The 10 minutes of listening appeals to me too! These are great ideas!

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  3. Great ideas for the lenten! I really loved the first one and I'm going to try to do it. I know it's hard for me to be quiet for, even, 10 minutes. But I'm sure it'll be worth it. I'm also going to go gluten free for the lenten. I think it's important to limit the indulgencies, like you said.

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    1. I agree - 10 minutes is a long time to sit still. I definitely found it helpful in putting things in perspective though. Eating gluten-free would also be a tough one!

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  4. love the idea for 40 letters! :)

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    1. I can't take credit for that one - a friend told me she had done that in the past. I'm glad you found one that speaks to you!

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