On making sacrifices

[Rachellem56]

Our Lady said that many would go to Hell because there would be no one to make sacrifices for them, and I don’t know many that actually take the Initiative to do so. I want to start doing it, but am not sure where to start. I can think of several things I could do, but find some of them really hard to give up. For example, I am somewhat of a culinary connoisseur so I find it hard to give up food. Plus, I’m on a restricted diet for medical reasons so there’s not much I can eat anyway and then going too long without eating makes me my condition worse. Does anyone have any ideas of where to start, or examples of what they themselves do? Thanks.

 

[Nelka]

Do you like eating a lot of chocolate?

Give it up on Fridays, trying to find a replacement for it is impossible.

 

[Stephen_says]

Give up salt on your food on Fridays

or mayonnaise,

do anything you can to eat blandly, that’s what really gets me.

Drink black coffee instead of putting cream in it,

drink water instead of soda or tea,

and it doesn’t have to be food.

Give up television,

the radio,

complaining.

If you are in the market for new shoes, or a new car, or a new whatever, and you have multiple choices, purchase the more humble choice and give the balance of your budget to charity.

Whatever you do, do it with love.

Pax

S.

 

[LordHaveMercy]

Our Lady said that many would go to Hell because there would be no one to make sacrifices for them, and I don’t know many that actually take the Initiative to do so. I want to start doing it, but am not sure where to start. I can think of several things I could do, but find some of them really hard to give up. For example, I am somewhat of a culinary connoisseur so I find it hard to give up food. Plus, I’m on a restricted diet for medical reasons so there’s not much I can eat anyway and then going too long without eating makes me my condition worse. Does anyone have any ideas of where to start, or examples of what they themselves do? Thanks.

Ideas Priests have given me:
-If you drink coffee in the morning, brew it the night before and drink it cold
-Put a small, smooth pebble in one shoe for the day
-At a restaurant, pick out your favorite item on the menu, think of how good it will taste, then order something else
-If you’re watching a movie, look away or change the channel at an exciting part
-If you can’t fast, put too much pepper on your meal
-Take cold showers
-Drive in the slowest lane you can on your way to work

My Pastor says that sacrifices and penances open our eyes to the real beauty of this life…one day maybe I’ll take his advice and see if he’s right.

 

[fred_conty]

Say an extra rosary a day for them.

This also means you give up some of your free time doing it, which you can offer for them as well.

Offer it thru the loving hands of Mary who actually wanted this done.

And then give all the merit(reward) to Mary to use as she so choses.

And may Mary and the child Jesus embrace you for wanting to help out those desperately needing help.

 

[The_Apostolate]

Our Lady, when she said too make sacrifices,meant more on the line off helping other,s,visiting the sick,praying for the Soul,s in Purgatory,praying for those that can,t pray for themselves,because their very Ill ,etc

 

[1ke]

Do not take food related advice from random people on the Internet when you are on a diet supervised by a doctor. Do not “put too much pepper” on your food or alter recipes.

Find non food related ways to make sacrifices, you can also say extra prayers for people.

Before undertaking such “sacrifices” as suggested here, you really need some spiritual direction from your pastor or another individual who knows you and your spiritual life. They will help you balance and not go overboard in any one direction. And of course, food items must be cleared by your doctor first.

 

[LordHaveMercy]

Do not take food related advice from random people on the Internet when you are on a diet supervised by a doctor.

YES! That’s super important. Prudence is key, talk to your doctor and confessor about penances.

 

[otjm]

Sacrifices too often are seen as simply “giving up” something we like. That is an extremely narrow view of the matter.

To the OP: you love to cook? Then find an outlet for your cooking which is “outside the box”; for example, there are plenty of organizations, including some small ones, which work to feed the poor. Join one of them, or work with them occasionally, to provide something out of the ordinary for the poor.

I am sure that with a bit of effort, you can take your skill set and find a means of using it which provides for others and gives glory to God.

And that does not mean “giving up chocolate”.

 

[Shea96]

This is a great thread, so many good ideas.

And yes, I agree that the focus is often on “giving something up” and food or tv are usually the first things to turn toward. I have found that my time is the hardest thing to “give up” in that I find it difficult to add extra prayers, or commit to reading a good spiritual book that I feel I simply do not have time for. Other things such as: Commit to daily Mass at least once each week, or weekly confession, visiting and praying weekly at a cemetery, an hour at Adoration before the Blessed Sacrament. All of these things are offering up your time in which you may rather be doing other things.

“Blessed Angela of Foligni said that our Lord revealed to her that there was no kind of good deed more pleasing to him than the ones we force ourselves to do…”

Focused and consistent prayer is extremely difficult for me, which is why I find it more edifying to* add* rather than sacrifice.

 

[otjm]

This is a great thread, so many good ideas.

And yes, I agree that the focus is often on “giving something up” and food or tv are usually the first things to turn toward. I have found that my time is the hardest thing to “give up” in that I find it difficult to add extra prayers, or commit to reading a good spiritual book that I feel I simply do not have time for. Other things such as: Commit to daily Mass at least once each week, or weekly confession, visiting and praying weekly at a cemetery, an hour at Adoration before the Blessed Sacrament. All of these things are offering up your time in which you may rather be doing other things.

“Blessed Angela of Foligni said that our Lord revealed to her that there was no kind of good deed more pleasing to him than the ones we force ourselves to do…”

Focused and consistent prayer is extremely difficult for me, which is why I find it more edifying to* add* rather than sacrifice.

Everyone has time for that which they consider the most important. I have no idea what you daily/weekly schedule is like, and it may be that you have demands on your time which are not negotiable.

However, if you look at it as “giving up time”, as opposed to “how do I use time”, you are back to the negative connotations of sacrifice.

Believe me, get yourself into a crisis, and you will find time to pray - or as my father, who was in the South Pacific in WW2 would say, “there are no atheists in a foxhole”. That perhaps is a bit of the extreme; but if you are struggling with trying to “find time” then perhaps looking at the issue from a different direction may be a better approach.

We all have time for what is most important. However, when we look at our use of time and see a change in activities as “negative”, we tend to avoid them. Looking at the changes as positive may change the weighting we give to the possible change.

Hope that helps.