Prayer
Lent is a great time to grow in prayer. I always love to see how numbers at daily Mass shoot up during Lent. Making the extra sacrifice necessary to attend daily Mass is worth it. By attending daily Mass, we make sure that we are following the daily readings that are related to the liturgical time we are living. We gain insight from the homilies throughout this time and get to receive Communion beyond just Sundays.
Taking up the rosary as a Lenten practice can also be helpful. This prayer has accompanied saints and sinners down through the centuries and Mary is always a good guide to get to know her Son. While praying the rosary during Lent, it makes sense to pay special attention to the Sorrowful Mysteries, dedicating time to the contemplation of Jesus in his suffering and death.
Perhaps, we want to make sacramental confession a big part of our Lenten journey. Especially if we are not in the habit of frequent confession, putting some dates on our calendar when we are going to go can be helpful. Before each confession, we want to make sure to do a thorough examination of conscience and we might want to do this practice daily or weekly to make sure we have a handle on how our relationship with God is going.
Spiritual reading is a great practice, especially for Lent. Taking a spiritual book and reading for 10-15 minutes a day can be life-changing. At the end of the reading time, take a few moments to reflect on what you have read and then write down some notes so that the spiritual fruit remains with you.
It can be hard to find a good book for spiritual reading, so I am going to make some recommendations.
Perhaps the most common starting place for spiritual reading for laypeople is the Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis de Sales. He offers solid spirituality and even gives the outlines to meditations so that you can begin the practice of mental prayer. I also recommend books by Jacques Philippe. He is a modern author, but dips into the perennial spirituality of the Church. If you are struggling with growing in the virtue of chastity, you might want to take a good Catholic book on the subject, such as Forged by Matt Fradd and Jason Evert. There are many good books, and but choosing one solid companion for Lent is usually better than trying to read too much.
Sometimes, we can feel like spiritual reading is only for people far advanced in spiritual life. In reality, even beginners can profit greatly from spiritual reading. If you are just starting out, I would suggest Jacques Philippe’s Time for God.
Fasting
Perhaps fasting is the penitential practice we are most familiar with during Lent. Giving up sweets under some form or another tends to be one of the more popular Lenten programs. This can be helpful and good, and definitely healthy. There are also other ways to fast.
I think it’s good to look at your habits and see if there is something you want to change. Maybe you eliminate or seriously limit screen time. Instead of watching secular shows, you make sure to consume some Catholic content.
Physical sacrifices can go beyond giving up chocolate or sweets and include other concrete sacrifices. Maybe Lent is a good time to get into a regular routine of exercise by running or going to the gym. Never do anything that might compromise your health.
Another area that people often overlook is bedtime and wake-up time. So many people struggle to get up on time. Lent might be the time to start a new habit of getting up on time. Often, we don’t think about the fact that it is hard to get up because we didn’t get to bed on time. A consistent sleep schedule might be a great sacrifice to offer Christ for Lent.
Almsgiving
Almsgiving can be supporting charities financially, but it can also be acts of service. Maybe you volunteer at a soup kitchen or tutor kids who are having a tough time in school. Whatever you do, reaching out to serve others brings you closer to Christ.
Almsgiving is about growing in our love of neighbor. We should definitely consider supporting others financially, but I think we should have a certain preference for actually doing things ourselves that serve others. This is the greatest way to grow in our love of God and neighbor.
You can’t do it all. Choose one or two practices and then stick with them throughout Lent. Re-center everything on Christ. This is why we have Lent every year. It is too easy to get distracted and go down other avenues. Once a year, we get the chance to re-center our lives on Christ.
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