Lent

Tomorrow is the start of Lent. I don't know much about Lent, I'll be honest, even though it is only a Google search away. What I have gathered from friends, and even some family, is that it is a 40 day fasting ritual.

Now normally, I don't keep track of Lent, however my daughters' friend is Catholic and is participating. She has chosen to give up fried foods for the 40 days and told my girls it was to remind us of how Jesus gave up His body on the cross. This is important to me. One, it is a good learning opportunity for my girls and two, I want to make sure I don't make fried food when their friend is eating with us.

My oldest daughter has decided she wants to participate by giving up eating potato chips. I've told her to pray about it. Though we are not Catholic, Lutheran, or any denomination really and don't see Lent as a requirement or expectation, I also don't see the harm in learning to let go of something that isn't good for you. To me the 40 days (and maybe this is the meaning) is a reminder of how Jesus fasted for 40 days and 40 nights. The point of fasting is to spend the time, we would spend eating, in communion with God instead. This would be through prayer, reading the bible, worship, acts of service, etc. Fasting is a way of focusing on feeding and strengthening our spirits. Lent seems to be a time to re-evaluate the health of our spirits and to remove things from our lives that have come between us and God, whether it be food, technology, or whatever. That's why I want my daughter to pray about it. Lent, at least from my perspective, shouldn't be something you do because your friend is, you feel obligated or required to do it, or because you just always have. It should be something you do between you and God. It should be something you choose prayerfully, seeking God on what it is that is coming between you and Him the most. I hope that, if she does participate that she does it for the right reasons and that she allows herself to be truly open to God moving in her spirit and changing her life.

I explained all this to her and also explained to her that she can't expect her sister to do it, just because she and their friend are. That if she chooses to or not, it is between her and God. If she does choose to, what she chooses to do, is between her and God. At this time, my younger daughter doesn't plan to, because she thinks it is boring. She is 9 and it isn't something we've really ever talked about. The last thing I explained to my oldest was that we don't have to give up things for Lent. We can give up things for God any day. She considered giving up cookies, but because Lent starts tomorrow and Valentine's Day is the next day, she decided that might not be a good idea. The only thing she felt ready to give up, temporarily, was potato chips.

As for me, what would I give up? I don't think I'd give up anything. I don't like the idea of giving something up, though I know Jesus gave up the Ghost. I prefer to think of it as letting something go. It sounds more positive, like an act of love not obligation. But that's just one of those weird things about me. I'd like to try letting go of all processed foods. There are just so many benefits to doing so, including facing the gluttony issue straight on and giving God more room to help us overcome that sin in our lives.