Michael St. Pierre

April 23, 2023

Post-Lent Resolutions

Happy Easter! It’s good to say this, even after the Big Day. The Church reminds us that the Easter season is longer than the Lenten season (50 days vs. 40 days).

How did your Lenten fasting-almsgiving-praying go? Now is the time to consider how you might sustain those practices OR modify them in the post-Lenten time we are in.

Here’s an example from my own life:

  • I gave up checking the news (sports, political and churchy). It was draining the life out of me and taking up too much time. 
  • I can 
    • a) continue to avoid the news, 
    • b) dive back into news checking or 
    • c) find an alternative.

I’ve picked the third option through an email called The Morning Brew. I get one email per day with a brief summary of the day’s news. It’s just enough and not too much, satisfying my appetite for current events without draining me or taking me away from my family and work.

I could see this “third way” related to prayer (taking what you learned from Lent and modifying it), almsgiving (donating to an organization that knows you and wants to be in relationship with you) and fasting (finding joy in smaller sacrifices outside of no-meat-Fridays). Make sense?

For your Lenten practices, how might God be calling you to continue them, quit them or find your own third way, keeping them going in new and exciting forms?

I’d love to hear how God is working in your life, post-Lent.

-Mike


Michael St. Pierre, Ed.D.
www.mikestpierre.com