Lent!

I decided to participate in Lent this year because I think it is a wonderful way to show devotion to Heavenly Mother, Heavenly Father & Jesus Christ our Saviour! I really wanted to give up something that meant a lot to me and would be difficult for me to give up! So guess what it is that I gave up... ICE CREAM! Holy cow, it was a very long 6 weeks. :) On Ash Wednesday, the day I gave ice cream up, Matt and I went grocery shopping and he was so sure that I would last longer than a few days that he bought me a whole new 1/2 gallon of cookie dough ice cream and he bought himself a 1/2 gallon of strawberry swirl. He ate it right in front of me and when he finished his whole thing in about 2 weeks I had to watch him eat my whole carton! By the time I could eat ice cream again that whole carton was gone!!!

But on a real serious note it was wonderful to give up something that I love to show my devotion to God! I thought about ice cream so much that it made me think of Jesus and his example, sacrifice and love! It also was a real strong reminder of the sacrifice that was made for me and all mankind. I was grateful to have something that helped me keep a true perspective 6 weeks before Easter.

Lent began on Ash Wednesday (February 25th) and concluded on Holy Saturday(April 11th), the day before Easter. The six Sundays in Lent are not counted among the forty days because each Sunday represents a "mini-Easter", a celebration of Jesus' victory over sin and death.

The number forty has many Biblical references: the forty days Moses spent on Mount Sinai with God (Exodus 24:18); the forty days and nights Elijah spent walking to Mount Horeb (1 Kings 19:8); God made it rain for forty days and forty nights in the days of Noah (Genesis 7:4); the Hebrew people wandered forty years traveling to the Promised Land (Numbers 14:33); Jonah in his prophecy of judgment gave the city of Nineveh forty days in which to repent (Jonah 3:4).Jesus retreated into the wilderness, where he fasted for forty days, and was tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1-2, Mark 1:12-13, Luke 4:1-2).

I truly enjoyed participating in Lent. I know I didn't follow every tradition of lent but I at least wanted to give up something to show my devotion to God and keep my mind focused on my Saviour. I definitely felt more spiritual as it got closer and closer to Easter. The sacrifices that were made for me and everyone else in this world are absolutely indescribable and really unfathomable. I try to think about how Christ must have felt and what all he went through! My mind can't even understand a small portion of it, it is far too great a sacrifice for anyone else to understand but Christ himself! This year I thought about that sacrifice every day for 6 weeks and I felt closer to Him. What a wonderful tradition to keep. Even though I am not Catholic I wanted to participate in Lent because I think it is a tradition that anyone who is spiritual and believes in Christ could enjoy and benefit from participating in. I'm sure glad I did and I think this will be something that I will participate in each year!