Were you motivated to have a life-changing Lent this Ash Wednesday, only to find that—a few weeks in—you’re failing? Fr. Mark-Mary walks you through one change you can make that could change your entire Lent: dedication.
Best Lent Ever – Day 5 – The #1 Way to Overcome Temptation
Best Lent Ever – Day 4 – A World Full of Distraction
Lent is a Process – Not an Event
Lent has begun and with it our season of penance and fasting. What are you planning on giving up or adding to your spiritual life?
Today, Fr. Mike helps us understand that Lent is less like a crockpot—which you can set and forge—and more like an ongoing, iterative process that requires our continual discernment about how we are drawing closer to Jesus.
Picking a Thing for Lent
Fr. Mike knows the tricks we can play on ourselves when it comes to picking something for Lent. So he gives a straightforward guideline: Don’t pick something that’s arbitrary. Pick something that is necessary.
In other words, don’t say you’re giving up watermelon when you know you will hardly eat watermelon anyway; and don’t give up hot showers if you know cold showers actually won’t help you grow in holiness.
We can easily fool ourselves into thinking strictness equates to holiness. Likewise, we can fall into the trap of thinking that the easiest thing will be the most helpful.
What do I really need to do or give up for Lent? If I take an honest look inside myself, it may be something difficult, but I will know.
Lent: Prayer, Fasting, and . . . Uh-Oh!
What are alms? Why must we give them? Am I supposed to go broke for Jesus?
Fr. Mike Schmitz encourages us to be charitable this Lent, emphasizing how almsgiving is a foundational part of living the Faith. In being joyful givers, we imitate Christ, who became poor for our sake, and we show our gratitude for God’s grace. These are just a few of the reasons Fr. Mike offers in this video as to why we should exercise almsgiving according to our means.
When Lent Gets Hard, Lent Gets Good
A daily rosary might not be difficult… until that family vacation. Cold showers aren’t so bad… until that cold snap. Charitable giving feels great… until finances are tight.
Today, Fr. Mike invites us to let Lent interrupt us. Lent is inconvenient because Love is inconvenient. If we give more this Lent, we’ll get more than we ever have before.