Giving up for Lent...

Lent seems to be more of a Catholic observance.


It's not something that has been a huge part in my upbringing in church - & yet it's something that, as one pastor put it, serves as a sort of tenderizer for our hearts in the days leading up to remembering the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.


i love the idea of preparing our hearts by having a daily reminder for 40 days, of the sacrifice of Jesus. i've never quite known how to incorporate that into our lives - with little ones...


Earlier this year, Cai & i were in a bookstore & she found a little book about Lent - with daily scripture readings. She asked me what Lent was & when i explained it to her, she decided she wanted to observe it - & bought that little book with her own money.


Now that Lent is finally here - of course - the little book is missing. So, we've been scrounging in our hearts and brains for an appropriate way to observe it.


A friend suggested to me a "Lent Jar". She said that when she was little, they would fill the lent jar with little papers, each with a written daily sacrifice. Over the course of Lent, they would pick one for each day. Cai loved the idea - so we set to work getting one ready.


Some of the scraps of paper read: No tv, no computer, 5 minute tidy, play a game with a little one, make a card for someone who needs one, no sweets, "silent supper", copy work from scripture... etc...


i'm hoping that these daily reminders will open up opportunities for conversation about Jesus - who loves each one of us so much - & that as we enter the time of year when we remember all that God has done for us - Passover, Sacrifice, Resurrection... that our hearts will be soft enough to be drawn to Him.