Level-Up This Lent

In the gym, leveling-up means pushing yourself just a little harder so your “normal” becomes stronger over time. The same applies to our faith. Lent doesn’t have to be about just “giving something up”. It can be about growing closer to God. Keep reading to find out ways that you can stretch yourself spiritually!

“I am giving up Chocolate for Lent this year!”

It all starts with good intentions. Until the opportunities to make this an actual sacrifice begin! Attending a birthday party, where a decadent chocolate cake is being served, you reason with yourself: Giving up all chocolate might be too much… maybe just chocolate candy bars.

Until someone offers you a piece of irresistible Swiss chocolate, and you think, Okay, fine—just no Snickers bars! (My favorite!)

Suddenly remembering that Sundays are feast days and some people say you can have your sacrificed food on feast days so: of course I can eat Snickers on feast days!

To celebrate your Lenten discipline, you buy a bag of fun-size Snickers—just for Sundays, of course. But then a thought creeps in: If Saturday evening Mass counts as Sunday, then technically… I can have one on Saturday night too!

Come Monday, those fun-size Snickers are staring at you, whispering, “Eat me”. Giving in, you decide to specify: Ok, I am giving up King-size Snickers. That’s still a sacrifice, right?

Before you know it, your Lenten sacrifice has evolved into King-size Snickers on Mondays and Wednesdays—when wearing a red sweater.

Maybe this sounds a bit of an exaggeration, but does any of this sound familiar? If so, what do we do? How do we break the cycle?  Instead of constantly adjusting your Lenten commitment, maybe it’s time to change your approach. A few years ago, I did just that with some wonderful results!

Prayer in Action

Ash Wednesday usually hits toward the end of winter. The days are gray, the once-magical snowfall has lost its appeal, and the ice and cold want us to hibernate like bears until spring. A few years ago- this particular winter was taking its toll. I was isolating and annoyed by COVID restrictions. My prayer life was almost non-existent. It was all too easy to escape into books, binge Netflix, or lose myself in puzzles for hours.

When Lent came, instead of trying to figure out which food to “give up”, I did 2 things differently.

First, I challenged myself to take action.  Knowing I needed to get up off the couch, I committed to leaving my house each day to do something for God. Second, instead of sticking to one sacrifice for all of Lent, I allowed myself variety. By allowing myself flexibility to change things up each day, I was able to embrace the idea of Lenten sacrifice in a different way. I would “give up” my tendency toward laziness. I would, instead, serve God.

My week would go something like this:

• Sunday: Mass
• Monday: Pray a rosary or a daily Mass
• Tuesday: Lenten retreat or some extra Parish activity
• Wednesday: Bible study
• Thursday: Adoration or sit quietly in church
• Friday: Stations of the Cross
• Saturday: Volunteer (homeless or nursing home visit)

Start Small, Get Good, and Grow

By making this change, my life has completely turned around. “Starting small” allowed me to try out some new things, continue practicing and “getting good” at some of them, and then “growing” by adding a little more. I still do many of the things I tried out that year, I was able to be more effective at home and in my relationships with others.

Here are some suggestions to help you Level- Up during Lent this year!

Start Small. If you are new to any sort of spiritual journey, it is important to start small. Pick something new and commit to doing it every day “getting good” at it —like morning prayer. Trust me, God would rather hear a few words from you each day than see you give up that extra cup of coffee. He loves you and longs for a relationship with you. This could be the perfect time to begin! Read more about this and get my free ebook 15 Simple Morning Prayers to get you started! This book will give you a variety of different prayers to keep it interesting.

Maybe it is time to grow. Examine your current prayer life and decide how to Level-up. Can you add a little bit in? If you are already solid in your morning prayers, for example, consider adding a gospel reflection each day. Listening to an audio version is my favorite way to incorporate this. Or a decade of the rosary. Or maybe start doing a night prayer.

Another suggestion: make a list of things you could do this Lent and sample a different one each day. It doesn’t need to be time-consuming—small acts like stopping by a church for a quick prayer or dropping off food at a pantry count. You can even cut the listed ideas into slips, put them in a jar, and surprise yourself (and your kids!) with a different daily challenge.

Be Okay with Failing

If the Bible could be summed up in one sentence, it would be: “It is a book of people’s failures and the triumph of God.” Imagine-God triumphs through our failures! If we were already perfect, we would not need Him, would we? Take heart! If you commit to do a morning prayer each day, for example, and forget, don’t take this “failure” to be your reason to give-up or water-down your commitment. Do it when you remember. Sometimes my morning prayers would happen in bed that night!

You are enough. God loves you. Let him.