Preparing for Lent

Lent begins Wednesday, February 17, 2021, and whether you are a Catholic or a non-Catholic Christian, it is a time to prepare yourself (and yours) for the Big Mystery: the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus. 

Now, for sure, there have been some Lenten experiences in my life that weren’t really well thought out. I was most likely in survival mode with my little family and well, that was just how it was, you know?

But now that my 8 kids can all flush and brush all by themselves, it’s nice to sit back and actually PLAN how we want to enter Lent.

Friends! We are podcasting again! If you'd prefer to listen to this blog, click the triangle below. 

If you are wanting to enter this time in a deeper way, I invite you to spend some time with your family and have a discussion about Lent. 

Ask them why we prepare for 40 Days. What is that even about? Here is a good resource so you can study up before you chat with your kids: All About Lent. 

Share with them any traditions you used to have while growing up. What did/does Lent mean to you?

If you are a busy parent and don’t have time to think about Lent, make the time today. As parents, we are the primary educators of our kids and it is truly up to us to train them spiritually.

Invite them to participate in Lent. If you’ve never done that, fabulous. What a great new tradition!

Explore (either on your own or with your family) what is getting in the way of the spiritual growth of your family. 

• Are you spending time in prayer?
• Do you pray as a family?
• How can you add more quiet/individual prayer?
• How can you pray together as a family?
• What does that look like? 

Last year I wanted to pray the Rosary with my family but I didn’t start with that. Instead, I spent weeks reading to them ABOUT the rosary. Then we started with a decade a night. We now pray the rosary every single evening. 

Read more about how I made that process happen: Make the Rosary Come to Life! 

That, more than anything else, has truly unified our family. It’s pretty gorgeous but I want to be clear: it was a PROCESS.  

When you think of your family, what kind of prayer can you add to the rhythm of your home? 

Do you love going to Stations of the Cross? Can you teach your young kids about the Stations? Would they be interested in making their own stations in your home? What would that look like? 

“Catholic Icing” has some free printables. Check them out!

Let’s talk about family time. What gets in the way of family unity? How much screen time does your family participate in each day? Have devices taken over?

Now. Parents are just as “digitally distracted” as the kids, wouldn't you say? What would it look like for the entire family to unplug a bit? 

• Could you set time limits? (Such as 30 min or less a day.) 
• Could you set a “cut off time?” (Such as everyone off screens by 8 p.m.)
• Could you remove all social media apps from all devices? 
  
• Another option: Zero screens during Lent. ​

While phones and “being connected” to the world wide web seems amazing, I come back to this: 

Are my kids consumers or producers? I don’t want them to be lazy and simply consume 100% of the time. I want them to MAKE THINGS. I want them to be motivated by LIFE, not by the latest Youtube video. 

I know from past experience, that it takes a hot minute to transition from screen dependency to “real life.” 

Is it important for your family to spend more time in real life? Discuss that. 

One thing for you to know, Mother, is that phones/devices/games have become the place where kids (and adults) go to get their emotions and feelings met. When we are feeling off balance, we pick up our phone. When we are feeling bored, we head to a screen.

Could Lent be used as a resource of sorts to DISENGAGE from the electronic devices? 

If your children are totally connected to screens, please read this post: Parenting is Heart Work. In that post, I share a time when my entire family was addicted to devices and what we did to turn that boat around. 

In my next post, (scheduled for Friday the 19th) I will explore the idea of "giving things up" for Lent. I think you'll like the deeper connections made. 

Finally, during this Lent I decided to open the doors for a special session of my course, “Inside Out.” 

I don’t know if you’ve been out of sorts lately, but this course is about getting back into balance. It is about making choices that are more aligned with who you are, especially in the realm of food and eating. But mostly, that course is a bridge from your womanly heart into the Heart of the Father. 

Please join us. Doors will close on Friday, February 19, 2021.  

​