I didn’t fully understand the meaning of giving up meat (and something else) during Lent until we traveled to Morocco (this photo was taken in Fez). We happened to be there during Ramadan and I became very aware of the sacrifice that Muslims make during that time of not eating all day. And what it means to their spiritual life.
I had stopped giving up anything for Lent the year after my sister died when I was sitting with the priest at Ball State, where I was a senior, and I made a comment that I needed to figure out what I was giving up for Lent. Fr. Dave said, “You’ve lost enough. Do something nice for yourself.:”
I kept Fr. Dave’s words in the back of my mind since then and in the past ten or so years ago, I changed it to do things that help me evolve as a person which in turn helps me grow closer to God. I often have this sense that I am closest to God when I’m writing and many of the Lenten goals I’ve set have been related to writing. Usually these include spending more time writing and trying to finish manuscripts. In some way, it’s prayer time for me because in the early morning darkness when I run Lilly, I ask God to bring me my writing for the day.
On Friday, I was visiting Fr. Gene, the Norbertine priest with whom I do my spiritual direction, and we were talking about this. “Lent is about change,” he said.
No matter what we choose to do for these forty days and nights we’re traversing the desert with Jesus– after all, there are many paths to God– it should be something that helps us evolve, to be better people, to make life more meaningful.
Wouldn’t those be the same things that would draw us closer to God, too?