Lent- the plan

So I have been thinking a lot about lent this year, and really feel like I should actually participate it has always been one of those things I sorta thought about and said I would do next time, and then next time rolled around and well it never happened. But I decided to change that this year. However unlike most people I will not be giving up chocolate, sweets, deserts, coffee, or anything food related. Not that those are necessarily bad things to give up. It is just that to me it doesn't seem like me depriving myself of any kind of food particularly ones I don't like all that much to begin with is really going to being me closer to God or help or help me repent and do soul searching which believe it or not is the original intended meaning of lent. Yes, giving up our favorite foods is very much a tradition of this time and I appreciate that tradition and sacrifice I just wanted to give up something more meaningful that would actually requirement to repent and soul-search.

As I was trying to decide what to give up I felt a different pull/ desire to start more consistently doing my devos and spending time in the word and pray with God daily. Something I regrettably do not get to every day. So I came up with an idea this year for lent I will give up my mornings of sleeping in and hinting snooze. In my opinion far more of a sacrifice that giving up something like coffee or chocolate. But yes I have decided to do what all those highly spiritual people you hear have done where they get up and start the day off praying and reading the bible.... I have always waited till the end of the day, but now I am going to get up early and give God the day right from the begging when I will wish I am asleep. I know this won't be easy particularly as the nights get longer with school. But I have decided I will give this up and hopefully start this habit of giving God my day and starting my day off right.

For those of you that donno what Lent is here is a little background. Lent is a Christian tradition, that occurs the forty days leading up until easter. The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer — through prayer, penitence, almsgiving and self-denial — for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and Resurrection of Jesus, which recalls the events linked to the Passion of Christ and culminates in Easter, the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. By observing the forty days of Lent, the individual Christian imitates Jesus’ withdrawal into the wilderness for forty days. All churches that have a continuous history extending before AD 1500 observe Lent. The ancient church that wrote, collected, canonized, and propagated the New Testament also observed Lent, believing it to be a commandment from the apostles.

So keep in touch as I commit to giving up 30 minutes of snooze each morning for 40 days... I will be posting my progress and some reflections as I go if you are interested in reading.