Fasting, giving something up, doing something better, relying on God, ashes on the forehead on Ash Wednesday, all common thoughts that come to mind when anyone thinks about Lent. For those who are not Catholic and aren't sure what it is, Lent lasts forty days, not including Sundays, that's six weeks.
It represents the time Jesus spent walking in the desert, enduring temptations from Satan and preparing for his ministry. Sunday's are not counted because they're considered 'mini-Easters. Lent is a time for self-reflection, repentance, and fasting, all in preparation for Easter.
This Lent I chose to give up two things; ice cream and social media. But it's not just me giving up tangible things, they represent something greater. Ice cream is not only my favorite dessert but it tends to be my comfort food. If I have a bad day, I'll go buy a chocolate milkshake, if an exam completely went worse than anticipated, I'll go buy an ice cream cone, and I'll call it a day. I don't think that's a proper way to handle me being upset.
During Lent this year, if something were to go bad, I would like to focus on meditating, write it out, or just work out to relieve the pent up emotions.
Social media is a major distraction as much as some may not want to admit it. If I get a Snapchat, I don't just check that snap, I go through my whole feed to see if anyone has uploaded something new. If my friend sends me a tweet, I don't just look at the tweet, I check other tweets they may have in their favorites or I refresh my timeline. If I get on Instagram, I don't just go through my feed, I check the stories too. This whole process can take anywhere from ten to an hour long. That just takes a whole hour from things I SHOULD be doing. I'm hoping that by giving this up, I'll have more time to study, have more face to face interactions, and focus on what's going on in the world around me.
It's only Day 1 but so far so good. We'll check back in soon and see how things are going. Will it work? I'm praying so. Will I learn? That's what this is all about. What's all this about? Growing in faith and growing closer to God.
