What are you abstaining for?

Ash Wednesday marked the start of the Lenten Season.   

This traditional purpose of Lent is the penitential preparation of believers – through payers, penance, repentance, almsgiving and self denial.  This is our preparation before Easter.

For some, this is the time for fasting.  For some this is the time for recollecting everything that happened from before and why we are in this situation right now.  For me it’s both.

 

Now, in observance of the Lenten season, what are you abstaining for?  It is not always avoiding eating meat; it is abstaining for something that you know you can do without in 40 days, any type of luxury as a form of penitence.  Abstaining from something is our faithful commitment of avoiding something that we were used to doing.   

In doing so, we are committing in reflecting on Jesus Christ’s suffering and sacrifices, His Life, death burial and resurrection.   In doing so, we are slowly turning our lives more completely over to Christ and His way of life.

It is a time of staying away from sin and bringing ourselves into the realization that we can always do a better job for ourselves in doing things the right way, rooting out sins from ourselves little by little.

I liked the gospel for Ash Wednesday “Matthew 6:1-6; 16-18”

In summary it tells us that whatever it is that we do and we believe it’s a good thing, is something that we should not boast about. Whatever we do, wherever we do it, whoever we do it with is already seen by Him and we will be rewarded according to what He knows is best for us.

Every year, during this season, we are always given the chance to move forward in His direction and slowly driving ourselves away from sins.  It may not be easy but everything can be done “One Step at a Time”.