Lent is the 40 days (not including Sundays) from Ash Wednesday to Easter Saturday. It is time to prepare ourselves for Easter, but that requires of us to go deeper into God, and relive the passion and death of Christ in Holy Week.

The great thing about Lent is that it has a start, a middle and an end. In other words, if you want to try out a new devotion, discipline or act of personal generosity, you can have a go in Lent, and if it doesn´t work out there is no shame in walking away at the end. So why not give it a go?

The things that people do in Lent tend to fall into one of four categories:

🙏Prayer – it is good to spend some quality time with our God in Lent. For some of us, that might mean setting some time aside each day for prayer or meditation, for others perhaps to go for a regular walk and contemplate God´s creation, for others maybe joining a prayer group, or taking on a new discipline about going to church? But try it. And try to find how God`s mercy and love can flow through you into his world.

📚Study - Many Christians use Lent as an opportunity to engage in more intensive personal development related to their faith, perhaps reading a book of the Bible all through, perhaps joining a group to study a theological or devotional book, maybe following a course of study on the web, or reading a book quietly by oneself. It is a chance to deepen who we are and better understand the religious beliefs and practices that we sometimes take for granted.

🥣Fasting - or giving something up, is a very common practice during Lent. The idea is that giving up a regular part of life, such as chocolate, meat, or alcohol, can be a reminder of Jesus’ sacrifice and take away something that we may use to distract ourselves from the needs of others. Some people go a bit further and give up other activities during Lent to reorient their faith, like watching television, going to the gym, or social media.

💰Giving or Charity - Giving money or doing something good for others is a very good way to respond to God’s grace, generosity and love. Some people, for example, will spend time in Lent volunteering in a particular social project, or doing something practical in their church. Others might donate money – perhaps something like the couple of euros they spend each day to buy their morning coffee.

But try it. Lent is great for those who want to give it a go and see if it works!