Grow closer to God this Lent
Hi! This is John Nemmer again. I would like to talk with you about Lent. Now, Lent is celebrated for 40 days before Easter. It’s a great time of fasting and prayer. During these 40 days of Lent, we remember God’s mercy and the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross on Calvary.
His love is so great that by choosing to suffer and die for the salvation of us poor sinners that in Lent, we always should try to grow closer to God by giving something up, or by taking something on. By giving something up, we remember the 40 days Jesus was fasting in the desert before He began spreading the good news on Earth. We can give anything up which gives us joy but make sure it brings us closer to Jesus.
Don’t just give something up to better yourself but give something up to better your relationship with God. Let me give you an example; when I was younger, I decided to give up all cartoons for Lent. It was the very first Lent I decided to give something up however, I didn’t grow closer to God because I stopped watching cartoons. A few years later, my sisters and I decided to pray The Chaplet of Divine Mercy together and that brought us closer to Jesus. Do you see what I mean? God will be pleased with us if we truly make an effort to grow closer to Him this holy season.
Think of Jesus as our example, who went into the desert and fasted and prayed for 40 days just to grow closer to His Father in Heaven. He wanted to grow closer to the Father so much and prepare Himself for the hard road ahead. He left everyone He cared about and went into a place that was hot, deserted, and had no food or water. I think we should do something like that for Lent. Now, I’m not saying we actually should go, find a desert, and live in it for about a month. However, we should find time every day to be with God in prayer alone.
If we truly try to put everything else aside and just have a better relationship with God this Lent, He will be so pleased with us. We also will we grow more in holiness every Lenten day. May the love of our Lord, Jesus Christ, the help of the Holy Spirit, and, the glory of God the Father, be with you all!
Amen! Happy Lent! John Nemmer
John is a regular writer for SGYM3 and shares insights and prayer language from the heart. He is a parishioner at St. Greg's and you can find John faithfully at Mass every week with his loving family. Feel free to say "hi" when you see him!
