Treat Your Family to Homemade Cupcakes. Social Media. Valerii kosovskyi Getty Images. Werner Blessing Getty Images. Guido Mieth Getty Images. Binge Watching. Complaining, nagging, and criticism bring you down and rarely gets results anyway. Justin Paget Getty Images.
KhongkitWiriyachan Getty Images. Leaving Lights On. Single-Use Plastic. JasnaXX Getty Images. Staying Up Late. Online Shopping. Towfiqu Photography Getty Images. Credit Cards. Westend61 Getty Images. Being Late. Jamie Grill Getty Images. Your News Addiction. Overscheduling Yourself.
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below. This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. Moses was with God for forty days and nights on Mount Sinai in preparation for receiving the Ten Commandments Exodus But the primary focus for Lent is on: Matthew , where Jesus is portrayed as fasting for "forty" days and nights; Mark , depicting Jesus as being led into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil for "forty" days; and Luke , telling of Jesus being led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit to fast and to be tempted by the devil for "forty" days.
Taking into consideration how Jesus prepared for his ministry, "forty" was determined to be the number of days his followers should use in preparing for Easter. And now, finally to my proposal of what all of us could and should give up during the Lenten Season.
In recent years, the emphasis on giving up something during Lent has gradually been changing to focusing on positive behavioral changes. My proposal for the Lenten season is in keeping with this new trend. I propose giving up the practice of focusing on the faults of other people and, instead, looking for their good qualities.
I am not suggesting that we just suppose that everyone around us can be trusted and we need not worry about our personal safety or the security of personal belongings. That would be foolish. I am referring to our fascination with reading, hearing, and talking about the bad, the ugly, the unsavory. All newscasts that I am aware of start out with murders, thefts, sexual abuses, ISIS executions, fires, wrecks, divorces of famous people, and other sad situations.
In most newspapers, the lead stories usually deal with shocking and tragic events. As the old newsroom saying goes, "If it bleeds, it leads. My proposal for Lent is that we have a major change in attitude. How many times at the local coffee shop do we overhear people say: "Just wait until I tell you about the most wonderful thing that happened to me this morning"; or "I'm so excited about the extraordinary way our boss treats us"; or "Wait until I tell you about the superb way our neighbor treats his wife"; or "Our neighbors have the most well-behaved teenagers"; or "My husband does the most marvelous things for me"; or "The government is being so careful with how it spends our tax dollars"; and so forth.
We seldom hear comments like that. Instead, we hear about the immoral, unfortunate, and sad things. But regardless of how miserable people can be, it is usually possible to find some good in them. The same holds true with tragic events: usually we can find something good to come out of them. By giving up our inclination to find fault with others, perhaps other people will reciprocate by treating us in the same way.
Back in the day, Christians would deprive themselves, only eating one full meal a day and two small snacks. However, in the modern age, religious followers choose to abstain from something in particular, making the fasting period more achievable.
Generally, those observing Lent will also aim to perform one positive act for each day between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday.
Maundy Thursday marks when Jesus had his last supper with his disciples as well as the initiation of the Eucharist. Traditionally, the monarch of England would wash the feet of the poor and kiss them on Maundy Thursday — unlikely something Queen Elizabeth II would be willing to participate in these days, especially amid a pandemic.
Ash Wednesday: Top ten facts about first day of Lent. When does it end? Why do we give something up for Lent? Why do we give up something for Lent? Image: Getty.
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