Lent in the mind of most Catholics, means you give something up. That is how we were raised. It’s in our blood, our heritage. The idea is that you go without something you enjoy, and then the money you might have spent on that, you give to charity. People give up all kinds of things, like cookies, or sweets, coffeee, alcohol. Over the years, I have given up lots of things.
I have this overly active conscience. And I mean overly active. So whatever I give up, I had to always make sure it was painful enough. Lol… so I would sit there and analyze what I was going to give up. Coffee? Nah, if I went without it, I could just drink tea and I would be fine. Cookies or sweets? Nope…. that wouldn’t have bothered me all that much. Alcohol? I don’t drink, so no. What to give up…… A few years I gave up meat for Lent. That was somewhat challenging, and felt painful enough to me. Lol….. Catholic Guilt… look that up, is my my face the illustration?
When I started with Dr. Jack, what was I going to give up? Good eating? Salad? Soup? Lean protein? Guess not. So I had to go a different route. I know a lot of people are into taking something up, but that never feels quite “Lent” to me. I needed different.
This year, I decided that I am definitely giving up some things. Things that are really hard for me. You see, I ran across this article written by a priest that included things to give up that were not food. And when I read the list, I got pretty welled up because I sooooooooooooo fit more of them than I would like to admit. I sent the list to Dr. Jack. We talked about it… I decided I was going to work on that list, It is definitely a massive Lenten journey and in many ways these things are a lot harder than if I gave up sweets.
Now normally, I wouldn’t share with people, because then if I fail at it, no one will know. Lol….. plus it’s all that suffer in silence thing. But I decided to make an exception and share, because so many people who follow me are just like me. Here is the list I found. Whether you are Catholic or not, giving up one or two of them would be all positive.
19 things you might consider giving up this Lent and beyond:
Fear: God is on my side. In Him I am more than a conqueror. (See Romans 98) Me!
The need to please everyone: I can’t please everyone anyway. There is only one I need to strive to please. Me, oh this is soooooo me!
Envy: I am blessed. My value is not found in my possessions, but in my relationship with my Heavenly Father. Not me… I don’t envy others.
Impatience: God’s timing is the perfect timing. Holy cow, yes! Especially when it is for something I want for myself. I have tons of patience for other people. Me? Not so much.
Sense of entitlement: The world does not owe me anything. God does not owe me anything. I live in humility and grace. This one? Not me at allllllll… I do not feel entitled.
Bitterness and Resentment: The only person I am hurting by holding onto these is myself. Hmmmmm…. I hurt over things, and the only person I do hurt by that is me. Work on a modified version of that.
Blame: I am not going to pass the buck. I will take responsibility for my actions. Heck no, I take the blame for Everythinggggggggg….. so in some ways, I need to work on that. Not everything is my fault.
Gossip and Negativity: I will put the best construction on everything when it comes to other people. I will also minimize my contact with people who are negative and toxic and bring other people down. Not about other people, but I can get awfully negative about myself. I can get negative…. really negative but I have worked soooooo hard about not doing that anymore. It’s easy to blame yourself and get negative. Wayyyyyy tooooo easy.
Comparison:I have my own unique contribution to make and there is no one else like me. Yeah… check! I am good at thinking that I am always running a mile behind the pack.
Fear of failure: You don’t succeed without experiencing failure. Just make sure you fall forward. Oh gosh yes!! I am terrified of failure. I was last October and I still am. I am not done yet and I am terrified of failing.
A spirit of poverty: Believe with God that there is always more than enough and never a lack. Hmmmm…. no….
Feelings of unworthiness: You are fearfully and wonderfully made by your creator. (see Psalm 139). Oh put a huge check and mark it in highlighter. I always feel unworthy. Gotta work on that one.
Doubt: Believe God has a plan for you that is beyond anything you could imagine. The future is brighter than you could ever realize. Double check.
Self-pity: God comforts us in our sorrow so that we can comfort others with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. Sometimes we allllll go here….. someone needs to feel pity for us. So we do it for ourselves. Yes, I need to work on this one.
Retirement: As long as you are still breathing, you are here for a reason. You have a purpose to influence others for Christ. That does not come to an end until the day we die. Ummmm… no… lol… work two jobs and then some. As long as I am breathing, I will be doing something.
Excuses: A wise man once said, if you need an excuse, any excuse will do. I don’t make excuses for myself but I kept mulling this one around.
Lack of counsel: Wise decisions are rarely made in a vacuum. Heck no! I will take advice from anyone who will give it, that’s where the problem was. So I have gotten to be more picky whose advice I take.
Pride: Blessed are the humble. No….. never… not me. If anything the opposite. I refuse to take any credit for things that I have done even when I did it on my own. Somehow that feels all wrong to me. People tell me all the time to take credit for my work with Dr. Jack, but to me that’s a lie. I didn’t do it alone. It was a team effort. But I can still see where I need to work on this one.
Worry: God is in control and worrying will not help. Yes, another biggie! I have a monopoly on worry. I am great at worry. I can worry about worrying. My mom was the family worrier, and when she died I seemed to have inherited the torch. I can worry about worrying. Definitely needs work.
So every day, I try to work on one, focus on it and when I get to the bottom of the list, I just start over. Definitely a Lenten journey! Painful? Some days, yes! Hopefully Easter Sunday, I will be in a great state of accomplishment. We will see.
Hugs,
Chris