I grew up Southern Baptist, but in a prominently Catholic area of the country. As a child, I never participated in Lent. Being one of two kids in my class that didn't participate in Lent was tough. I couldn't relate to what the other kids were doing, and to be honest, as a kid, that sucks.
Fast forward to my adult life, where I decided to start giving Lent a try.
It started out with just giving something up. Some of the more difficult things I've given up for Lent were fast food and using my credit card. Those two required some strict discipline on my part.
This year I've had a more difficult time deciding what to give up for Lent. Most years I've felt there was something that I've been too dependent on, but this year that hasn't been the case. Sure, I know that there are things that I'm dependent on, but I haven't felt led to give any of them up.
This year, I'll be doing Lent a little different. Instead of giving something up, I'm going to focus a little more on refocusing my life.
I'm interrupting my current Bible study, to tackle Reset. When I saw this devotional on Money Saving Mom as one of the free books, I felt God telling me that this was what I needed right now.
I also will be reading my way through the Gospels over the course of the season.
I can admit that my prayer life is on life support. In fact, it's slightly non-existent. I haven't felt very comfortable praying in a long time, so I'm adding this to my days during Lent in the hopes of being more confident and comfortable with it going forth.
Lastly, I'm going to spend Lent focusing on counting my blessings. Sometimes when work gets slammed and stressful, it's easy to lose track of just how blessed I am. Each day, I'll be writing down three (at least three) things that I'm grateful for. I will also be writing notes to the people in my life that I'm grateful for as I feel led. Sometimes we focus so much on the things we are grateful for, that we forget about the people we are grateful for.
Are you giving up or taking on during this Lenten season?
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