Lent is the perfect time to approach Jesus and grow in your personal relationship with Him. If your Lent is usually a check off list of traditions you learned to do as a kid, and have kept doing as an adult, I challenge you to stop and rethink your Lenten plan. Habits and traditions are good and can keep us walking the straight and narrow but if they become so routine that they loose their meaning it is time to shake things up a bit.

This Lent I encourage you to look at the three pillars of Lent as ways to push yourself out of the way and get to know God!

Pray

Use prayer as a way to get out of the way of how you use your time. Find ways this Lent to spend time with Jesus. One of the key components of a good relationships is taking time to spend time with the people you love. It is no different with Jesus. This Lent find ways to increase not only the time but the quality of the time you spend talking with, (praying), Him. Perhaps you add 15 minutes of silence to your morning routine, or add a spiritual reading to your prayer time. You could add an hour of Eucharistic Adoration or an extra mass to your weekly routine. Finally why not participate in some of the additional group prayer opportunities at your parish and throughout our diocese this month. Check out our event page or your church bulletin for ideas.

Fast

Use fasting as a way to get the things we put our focus on out of the way and reorient us to that which is  most important.  Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters” (Mt 6:24). It is not bad to enjoy the good things in our life but use Lent to remind yourself that these are fleeting and will not satisfy the real yearning we have. By fasting from food, drink or things we enjoy we are getting our bodies involved in our prayer. We are developing self discipline and using the discomfort we feel as a reminder to fill our lives with what we really need, to know God.

Give Alms

Get the things that tie us down out of the way. Things can hold us down. Use Lent to lessen their hold. Almsgiving is probably the pillar of Lent that is least focused on making an intentional plan for. Maybe we threw some coins in the rice bowl as a kid but as adults do you challenge yourself on Ash Wednesday to create a plan for additional giving of time and money. Why not make this a key part of your Lenten journey. Jesus's journey to the cross required Him to leave everything behind. As we pray and fast this Lent ask Jesus to show us ways we can be His hands and feet to others by our generosity of time and treasure.

Finally write down the ways you plan to push yourself aside this Lent. Keep them at the forefront of your attention and enjoy getting to know God a little better. May the journey be enjoyable and bear much fruit in your life and the lives of those around you!

How might the world be better if all the women in our diocese pushed ourselves aside this Lent and got to really know God? Let's Find out!

We Are Better Together,

Barb