Living Lent

I was exhausted. Completely bleary-eyed and dazed. 

I look back now, and I realize that I didn't know if I was coming or going during those first months after Daniel came home. His nights were so restless, bless his heart. Ours were, too.

As my sister-in-Christ and dear friend, Carrie, walked towards me at the YMCA that day in 2010, I'd remembered--the minute I saw her face--that it was Lent. I was broken. It felt as if I'd failed Jesus.

"Oh my God!" I cried. "Carrie, I forgot all about Lent!" 

"Lisa," she said, "Don't you see that you are observing Lent?" "Don't you see that what you are doing to care for Daniel is the greatest sacrifice you can make right now?"

I felt relief--and peace--hearing her words. But I didn't see it. I didn't see sacrifice; I was just being a mom. And I was only doing what I needed to do for my son. 

Four years later, I see it all so clearly in retrospect. Still I see that I was simply being a mom, but now I recognize the sacrifice; I recognize how we were living Lent without even trying to intentionally give something up for the season. We never complained or grumbled about our desperate and worn-out walk. We just lived it.

I realize now how Jesus carried us through that one Lenten journey--the one that I couldn't see, yet was, undoubtedly, was one of the most meaningful in my lifetime. We are closer to Him now because of it.

And our hearts are so, so full.

Isaiah 40:31

But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

Transformation Time?

I don't know about you, but I've been longing for a full-on transformation lately. I'm ready.

And in talking to friends about this, it seems many of you are ready, too.

Could there be a better time than the season of Lent? It begins this Wednesday with Ash Wednesday and continues for forty days until Easter.

I'll be walking it with Jesus this year. Wanna join me?

This past weekend, I had the pleasure--thanks to the generosity of a friend--of attending a Matthew Kelly experience called Passion and Purpose.  It was ahhh-mazing!  So much of what Matthew said resonated in my heart, and he spoke in such simple terms. He's a humble man. He's funny and engaging, and it's clear that he tunes in to the Holy Spirit on a daily basis. Matthew founded an organization called Dynamic Catholic, and he is, literally, transforming our church. He's doing really good, solid work in the world.

I've asked his permission to share some of what he taught us, and here's just a little taste to help you with your transformation this season. But I'm going to twist this up a bit, and incorporate some of his teachings into the "Live, Listen, Leap" mantra that the Holy Spirit inspired me to write about in With an Open Heart. Are you ready?  Here we go...

Live. 

Choose to seek happiness. God created us for happiness, and it is fragile. This is much different than pleasure. If you are confused about which is which, as Matthew shares, use this as a test: Pleasure cannot be sustained beyond the activity producing it. Happiness can be sustained after the activity is done. Make sense? Strive for happiness rather than pleasure.

In addition, get good at saying "no." We, as a society, are so prone to saying "yes" to every single thing that's asked of us (many times in fear of missing out on something), and in doing so, we may very well miss the special gift that God's designed just for us during that very moment.

Listen.

Choose silence.  Instead of allowing yourself to get dragged down into the noisiness of life with blaring televisions and other multimedia, find your quiet place. There is clarity in silence, and we consume less (of whatever we make a habit of consuming) when we have clarity. Clarity emerges from silence...the kind of clarity that creates true change within, because we can actually hear the Holy Spirit speaking to us.

Leap.

Choose a game-changer. Matthew cautioned us to resist the temptation and only choose one of these, so that we will be more likely stick to our commitment, and our chances of success will be greater, even though some of us (me) truly feel the need to do all three of them! 

The first game-changer is to read fifteen minutes of the gospels every day for a year. Pray about them, and learn from them. Take them to heart. He gave us this beautiful, and true, quote: "Jesus wants to take our lives and turn them totally upside down, which--in turn--will be right side up."   Amen to that!

As a society, Matthew points out, we tend to pray for "tweaking" in our lives...Lord, help me to change this; Lord, help me to fix that. As Matthew teaches, God is in the business of transformation, not tweaking. Stop praying for tweaks in your life, and pray for real transformation.

The Bible has the power to transform our lives. As Matthew stated, if we would even just commit to living out the weekly Mass readings, our lives will change radically. Radically. Imagine that?

The second game-changer is to commit to giving confession once a month for a year. The truth is that no one achieves excellence without coaching. We need spiritual coaching because we don't see things as they really are in our lives. Jesus is the best coach we could ask for, and confession is a powerful tool to free ourselves from the burden of sin.

The third game-changer is the one I've chosen. Start a Mass journal. Every relationship improves when we really start to listen. Each week before Mass, pray for God to show you ONE thing--one word--that week to change your life and help you become the best version of yourself. Soak in the whole experience...the music, the readings, the homily...and He will give you exactly what you need to transform through His words.

Ask yourself these core questions to find the best version of you...which is, essentially, the authentic you:

"Who am I?"
"What am I here for?"
"What matters most?"
"What matters least?"

As Matthew poignantly explains, "Every one of us has a "God-sized hole." The question is...what are you filling that hole with?

You see, our society devalues our God-given talents and we have counter-cultural dreams for our children. Our culture takes the stuff that's trivial and makes it important; we take what's important, and sadly, we make it trivial. We need to change. We need to transform.

We should live for an audience of one. After all, He's the only one who can fill those holes. "You simply can't get enough of what you don't really need," Matthew reminds us. And truly friends...all we need is Him.

If you want to learn more about living with passion and purpose, and oh...there is so much more, please visit Matthew's event page, and sign up for an event near you. You won't be sorry, I promise. And be sure to check out the Facebook page for daily inspiration.

Wishing you a blessed Lenten journey and a beautiful transformation,