How are you preparing for Lent?

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elijio said:
Here is the link to a brochure I recieved about the Secret of Fasting. For me, It is an every Friday spiritual experience which will elevate during Lent. It may also help those just preparing for Lent.
presentationministries.com/brochures/SecretFasting.asp
I heard of this on Catholic Answers Live.
Peace.
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Thanks for the brochure link.

This year I have a 7" crown of thorns. I have no intention of wearing it - only viewing it - possibly handling it and hopefully contemplating Our Lord’s Passion.
 
All - I am thinking about doing a post on the blog with many of these practical examples (from you here) of how folks are planning to more fully experience Lent. If you would NOT like me to use your post here, let me know. If you are positive on the idea I would be grateful if you could provide me with your first name, your state in life, your occupation, and how many children you have - that way people can better identify with you - also please let me know which post is yours.

God bless!
 
Lifeisawesome said:
All - I am thinking about doing a post on the blog with many of these practical examples (from you here) of how folks are planning to more fully experience Lent.
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Sure - spread goodness.

In the past, I have kept a bread basket on the kitchen table filled with spiritual books written for lent…the best bread for the day…easy to pick up…better than fresh sliced bread from the oven.
 
The best thing that I ever did for Lent was to start attending daily Mass 3 days a week before work. 4 years later, I feel the loss when I have to miss a day. I could do a commercial for daily Mass! One of the most valuable treasures of our Catholic Faith, IMHO.

This year I’m looking forward to getting my eating habits back under control. Typically, I give up chocolate, soda, and eating between meals. If I could do that all year long, I’d be in good shape, but that hasn’t happened yet.

The last couple of years, I’ve attended the Stations of the Cross on Friday afternoons, and have appreciated that.

I may take up the Rosary this year. Not one of my favorite prayers, but who knows, what it might become?

I know I will also be doing much more scripture reading this year because I’m participating in a Bible Study that will run through Lent. Not really something I’m doing “for Lent”, though.

Last year, I had a meditation booklet for Lent that I read faithfully every afternoon and then journaled to reflect and answer the question(s). I have continued with the journaling throughout the year.

If any of this is usable - lifeisawsome - I’m a teacher, a married mom of 2. Pick a name - any name - Claire? Hortense? :eek: Marie? Nicole?
 
I’m still thinking about it.

Last year, I gave up meat entirely. That combined with grueling hours at lacrosse practice helped me lose five pounds, but I didn’t need to! I lost all my energy, which was probably from not enough protein in my diet. It was awful! My doctor told me to stop if it got bad, but it wasn’t unmanageable. After Lent, I had a hard time eating meat for a month or so. 🙂

Definitely not going that route this year. I think I’ll work out more. 😃

Lifeisawesome: My name is Laura, I’m a student, and I obviously don’t have kids. 😉
 
Last year, I started praying the Rosary every single day starting on the first day of Lent, and I still do, save for a few nights here and there I might only say 1 decade. I’m planning on praying 5 novenas throughout Lent (Ash Wednesday to Good Friday). I’m not sure if I’ll pick a seperate novena each time, or do the same novena 5 times.

I might also give up iced tea for Lent again this year. I also eat 1/2 of what I normally eat for lunch, too (which isn’t much to begin with - just a simple sandwhich).
 
These are wonderful thoughts and ideas! I will attend a Women’s Retreat sponsored by my church over the weekend before Ash Wednesday.
I go each year and it is always so inspiring.

I started ridding my life of sugar in mid-December but keep slipping some in here and there. I am diabetic, so have not taken good care of myself. I will only use sugar substitutes over Lent.

I am an avid reader of mysteries and political thrillers, but am packing them out of reach and will only read those books approved by the church book club. I visited the Vatican in September and have so many books I brought home, so hope to really get into the study of them. God bless all of you.:signofcross:
 
cdanison said:
These are wonderful thoughts and ideas! I will attend a Women’s Retreat sponsored by my church over the weekend before Ash Wednesday.
I go each year and it is always so inspiring.

I started ridding my life of sugar in mid-December but keep slipping some in here and there. I am diabetic, so have not taken good care of myself. I will only use sugar substitutes over Lent.

I am an avid reader of mysteries and political thrillers, but am packing them out of reach and will only read those books approved by the church book club. I visited the Vatican in September and have so many books I brought home, so hope to really get into the study of them. God bless all of you.:signofcross:
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I’ve switched to soy milk and have purchased no regular sugar since last Lent, for baking use, using splendida or honey: 1 year. Going partly back to the natural foods diet that I found in my 20s, when people thought it was “odd,” except that I even thought soymilk was odd. Now the stores are well supplied with natural foods. The trick is to get the rest of the family on board. We are shopping for fresh fish now. Low sodium for more than a decade. Someone is my family is a sugar baby, and it is someone who is 92 years of age!
 
AveSantaMaria said:
P.S. I’ve been hearing a lot lately about St. Josemaria Escriva on these forums. Might someone help me to understand why they find him helpful, beneficial and/or inspiring. Also, maybe someone could tell me if he has any wonderful works on the Crucifixion
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You might find his meditations on The Way of the Cross helpful. You can read it online here.
 
Tepeyac said:
You might find his meditations on The Way of the Cross helpful. You can read it online here.
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Thank you for your extreme kindness in posting these lovely and wonderful motivations. It seems as if Christ himself asked you to post them at such an appropriate time in my life.

🙂 😃 ❤️ ❤️ 🙂 😃 :clapping: :dancing:
  1. That voice you hear within you: ‘What a heavy yoke you have freely taken upon yourself!’ … is the voice of the devil; the heavy burden… of your pride.
Ask Our Lord for humility, and you too will understand these words of Jesus: iugum enim meum suave est, et onus meum leve (Matt 11:30), which I like to translate freely, as follows: My yoke is freedom, my yoke is love, my yoke is unity, my yoke is life, my yoke is fruitfulness. escrivaworks.org/book/the_way_of_the_cross-point-2.htm
 
Another thing I’m thinking of doing is writing down all of the times (there are many) I’ve been hurt by others (mainly, being left out, and being made fun of - mostly in my childhood/teenage years by kids, family and teachers - because I have a hearing loss, and as a result, my voice sounds different. Part of my own cross that I carry.) and then offering it up in union with Jesus, and forgiving those people, along with the novenas I intend to pray.
 
I have recently returned to my faith and find that I have a thirst for knowledge about it and all sorts of things in it.
I have been wanting to read more about it…

With that being said, I plan to take at least 30 minutes a day reading any one of the books that I recently bought, such as the Catechism, books about praying, books about the rosary, and especially the book about St. Patrick, my confirmation name.

Then also take an additional 15 minutes to read/study the bible. I have not done this before, so this will be new to me.

I also plan to make a better effort at praying the rosary daily.

And last but not least, make it a point to be a faithful Catholic by going to Confession once a month for the remainder of the year.
 
This is great stuff - it is obvious that Christ is at work in your lives.
 
Oh yeah, I forgot.
It’s obvious on my name…🙂
I’m 30 and have no kids 👍
 
I just started reading a little book I got called “My Daily Bread”. It is from the Confraternity of the Precious Blood. It is presented as a spiritual journey. I also made the decision to get gossip and mean-spiritedness of any kind out of my life. I work in a place that is rife with that sort of thing, so I am a bit intimidated, but I really pray I can succeed.
 
Eating up all the sweets that I have access to, so that they’re all gone by Ash Wednesday 😛

Putting together a collection of books to read. I have a lot of free time on the job, and I usually read novels, but for Lent it will just be Catholic devotional and instructional books.

Loading my computer with mp3 radio series files from EWTN, for transfer to my player.

Changing my TV-on setting for the mornings, so it wakes me up in time to get to morning Mass every day, instead of depending on waking up on my own.

in Yul Brynner voice

“et cetera, et cetera, et cetera…”

DaveBj
 
I guess I may have a plan for a ‘run of the mill’ type sacrifice for lent, but it’s my first year I’m seriously observing lent (besides last year, no meat on friday), being recently blessed with an undying passion for the Lord. So anyways, I plan…
  • Deeper daily prayer
  • Praying a 5 decade rosary every day
  • More focused bible readings, in the sense of reading, reflecting, and then re-reading for any ‘missed’ meaning (as opposed to reading, somewhat reflecting, and moving on)
  • No meat at all 😦 … Now this one is going to be hard, as I am a full fledged carnivore, but I will try my best.
As I view it, the devoition to daily prayer, rosary, and meditation on verses are going to be wonderful to my spiritual life, but are not necessarily a sacrifice…it is just a means of getting closer to Christ.
Personally, the no meat sacrifice will prob be the hardest thing I have encountered so far (besides trying to quit smoking…which I hav so far been unsucessfull in:shrug: , but I know when I decide I really want it, I will have the strength -along with a little help from Him;) ) thus being the most meaningful to the spirit of lent. As my Uncle (a deacon) put in his homily in preperation for lent last year …“Give me a lobster any day!..Most people are happy at lent because they can have one of (if not their #1) favorite foods, and view it as a sacrifice. Salmon, shrimp, lobster, clams…all of it trumps steak in my book, so what am I really giving up but not eating meat on Friday?”
I dunno, Lent is all about sacrifice, so while choosing to pray more often, or harder, I believe you also have to GIVE UP something as an offering to the Lord.
Just my 2cents…
God Bless!
-Andy-
 
I’ve been studying the Old Testament Book of Jeremiah with “A Commentary on Jeremiah: Exile and Homecoming” by Walter Brueggemann. Very, very good.

Also reading a book on praying with the scriptures, “Meditation and Contemplation: An Ignatian Guide to Praying with Scripture” by Timothy Gallagher, OMV. Also very good.

I’m an avid reader, if you couldn’t tell…
 
I’m looking forward to Lent which couldn’t have come at a better time this year. My beloved cat died Dec. 18th, as I began to heal from that blow, my wonderful mother passed away January 27th – one kind of grief atop another and still I grieve (not horribly, but as a kind of state of being). Because Lent is fast approaching, my grief will pour into it. I’ll cut out flesh meat, but I will have seafood. I did that last year for Lent (that way I don’t have to think about not eating meat on Wednesdays and Fridays). I’ll be having eye surgery March 3, which will make me look awful at my frequent Mass attendance and choir appearances in front of the whole parish for weeks. That should diminish some of my pridefulness. I hope to attend our parish’s Lenten program of Friday soup meals after the 5:30 p.m. mass, then a spiritual enrichment presentation, then back upstairs to the church for stations of the cross. There will be Adoration 24 hrs. each week. And during all the time of Lent, my inner and outer wounds will be healing as I unite them to our Lord. I have a Lenten reflection book of meditations by Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI’s “Magnificat” book of daily readings. I’m an avid follower of EWTN’s specials and some regular shows. They’re sure to have some gems for the season, as they always do.👍
By Easter I’m certain I will share in the joy of the Resurrection as never before and then I want to keep on being a “Resurrection person”.
 
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