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My Top Ten Ways to observe Lent

February 16th, 2010 |

I am a Cradle Catholic so Lent is my way of preparing for Easter, but many Christian Churches observe Lent as well. I guess you could say “Lent, It’s Not Just for Catholics Anymore”. Here are my top ten ways to observe Lent. If this list doesn’t work for you I hope it at least peaks your interest enough to ask your church or place of faith how it prepares for the Easter Season. In all weeks , but especially this week my top ten is never in order.

Observe Ash Wednesday. I attend Mass on Ash Wednesday, and receive the ash cross on my forehead after Mass. I do not eat any meat, and have only a main meal and two smaller meals with no snacking in between. I also do this on Good Friday.
Know what Lent is: According to the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, “Lent is a 40-day liturgical season that begins on Ash Wednesday and concludes at the Great Vigil of Easter. Sundays are not included in the 40-day count because every Sunday is a joyful celebration of Jesus’ resurrection. Though not biblical, Lent has long been a tradition in the Christian Church, and it is thought that the tradition of the 40 days recalls the 40 days Jesus spent in the wilderness, fasting and being tempted by Satan (Matthew 4:1-11). Lent is considered a time of penance and discipline.” This is a pretty general description but with a quick Google Search you can find out so much more.
I decorate my home in some purple decor; this reminds me of the suffering and death, but also royalty and hope of the resurrection.
I Spend Lent with additional prayer, reflection and repentance. Lent is a time for soul-searching, facing great challenges and overcoming mistakes. This may be the perfect time to get back in touch with your spiritual life if you have strayed. We all fall off the wagon start with some forgiveness for you.
I follow the tradition of Lent by fasting, done in honor of Christ’s own 40-day fast in the desert. I do this by giving up meat on Fridays and just being more aware of my intake. You can do this in whatever way seems appropriate to you – its intensity varies from total abstinence to refraining from eating meat. Many churches focus less on fasting and encourage charitable deeds.
Give up something you love for the 40-day period or add a daily deed of faith, symbolizing the Lenten season’s return to simplicity and purity. I have given up gum as a child and as an adult I have given up Diet Coke and drive time radio and music – as long as the meaning of its absence or addition holds significant value to you.
I make room for Easter and the new life of spring. While this season might be tinged with solemnity, it should also be a time of looking forward to renewal and triumph. I like to start this season with gardening getting back in touch with the rebirth of Spring.
Meat Fast on Fridays: The fast food restaurants start with Fish Sandwich specials and Catholic Churches everywhere will be having their Fish Fries. If I make an oops and have meat by accident on a Friday, I start over again on Saturday.
Understand Good Friday: According to churchyear.net, “Good Friday is the Friday within Holy Week, and is traditionally a time of fasting and penance, commemorating the anniversary of Christ’s crucifixion and death. For Christians, Good Friday commemorates not just a historical event, but the sacrificial death of Christ, which with the resurrection, comprises the heart of the Christian faith. The Catholic Catechism states this succinctly: Justification has been merited for us by the Passion of Christ who offered himself on the cross as a living victim, holy and pleasing to God, and whose blood has become the instrument of atonement for the sins of all men (CCC 1992).
Prepare for Easter: I love hiding eggs for the kids, pretty Easter dresses, and planning Easter Dinner, but don’t forget the reason for the season. Easter is the amazing season of forgiveness. Remember if Jesus did all that He did so you can be forgiven; bring forgiveness into your life for yourself and others.

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