Lent: Not your Yearly 40-Day Diet

Lent to me as a kid was the time of the year when I couldn’t drink pop, when I went to dinner for fish and chips every Friday with my grandparents, and when I started my countdown to our annual Florida vacation. I couldn’t wait for Easter morning when I would get my chocolate bunny and whatever treat I had reluctantly given up for the past 40 days!

Yup, Lent was all about me as a kid. The whole not eating chocolate had no meaning to me…because I had no idea why I was doing it. How often is it that until an action has true meaning in our hearts, we are reluctant to do it? ALWAYS! It’s our nature. We put 110% of hard work into something in our lives when it is meaningful to us. It’s like writing a thank you note. If you are just signing a generic thank you to someone who you don’t even know because they came to your school for a class talk about something you found super boring, you are most likely to write something along the lines of, “Thank you for being awesome. –Maria”. But what if you were writing a thank you to your coach who helped you work through a tough spot by staying late after practice with you to help you out? Or maybe a family friend who helped you study for weeks to pass a hard class? That thank you would probably be a lot longer and more heartfelt because you could see how meaningful your words would be to your coach, or family friend and because you knew how important the outcome would be.

Lent is like this in a way. Lent is not just about what’s happening during those 40 days, its about WHY Lent is celebrated that makes the season so meaningful. The thank you note we offer to Christ is the penance we “endure” during Lent after seeing all that Jesus already endured for us.

When Adam and Eve brought original sin into the world they made a lot more work for humanity. No disagreement there, right? So when someone causes a big mess it calls for a great clean up.

That’s why when Jesus came to take that sin away, it didn’t just happen overnight. Among the many things he did during his earthly ministry, in Matthew 4:1-11 Jesus went into the desert to pray and fast for 40 days and 40 nights alone without any supplies. There he was faced with three temptations of the devil; temptations that were a lot harder to ignore than a craving for that Coca-Cola you gave up.

The FIRST temptation was on Jesus’ physical hunger for bread and water. Jesus denies it, reminding us that we hunger for more than what the earth can provide.

SECOND the devil tempts Jesus to test God’s love by jumping off a high cliff to see if God would save him. To this Jesus says that he refuses to test God’s faithfulness.

The THIRD and final temptation is that of power. Jesus is offered, “Kingdoms of the world and the glory of them” if he bows down and worships the devil (Matthew 4:8). This, of course, he also refuses; Satan leaves and is replaced by angels who take care of Jesus.

These three temptations are connected to the three ways (fasting, prayer, almsgiving) which we sacrifice during Lent for our own sins.

Temptaion 1: Fasting

We fast from meat every Friday during Lent just as Jesus fasted from food his entire time in the desert. We also can give something up to create a daily reminder of the things Christ sacrificed for us in his death.

Temptation 2: Prayer

Prayer is our complete reliance on the relationship we have with God. We know that we need to give our lives to God and give up our control to Him, just as Jesus did when he was tempted to call upon the angels and his own power. By adding specific prayer times every day during Lent, we can strengthen our dependence on God and the work He will do in our lives.

Temptation 3: Almsgiving

Finally we are called to almsgiving. Almsgiving can be the giving of financial resources, OR the resource of our time in service to others. This last temptation was the devil’s way of trying to blind Christ by desire for power, just as we are blinded by our own busyness or financial worries that we cling to because it gives us control, power over our own lives and security. In order to put the Lord first in our lives we must be willing to give Him ALL of us, including the time to humble ourselves and tend to the least of His children.

SO not only did Christ show us how to sacrifice and repent of our sins, he then went all the way and DIED for us so that our penance of fasting, prayer, and almsgiving would have even more meaning! He cared so much for us…and sometimes all we think we can manage is taking on a diet….

So this Lent remember, these 40 days are not just all about US. These 40 days of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are about the fact that we CAN do those things to make up for our sins BECAUSE Christ made it meaningful through his own life and death. So when Lent is over, it’s ok to go back to your normal routine, but make sure you don’t forget why you went through those 40 days of fasting in the first place!

+AMDG+

About the Author

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Maria Barone

I’m just your typical Italian-American, Buffalo-born, puppy-lovin’, adventure seeking, Catholic girl that actually isn’t that typical. I’m always ready to travel the world and learn new things while staying true to myself, my roots, and my faith. If you wanna see just how crazy I am go ahead and follow me on instagram @ria21993 or on Pinterest at ria223!

#art #lent #chocolate #fastingisfun #jesus