Let’s challenge ourselves this Lenten Season with 40 days of Sacrifice. Lent is the time when we devote ourselves to fasting, abstinence, penitence, and making personal sacrifices in preparation for Easter. We can prepare this year by doing a different sacrifice for each day of Lent to bring us closer to Jesus. Lent begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Easter Saturday and there 40 weekdays in between. These 40 days are in commemoration of Christ’s fasting in the wilderness. As we partake in this 40 day Lenten Challenge, let us remember Jesus’ sacrifice for us on the Cross and His Glorious Resurrection.
March 1-Ash Wednesday: Witness to your faith by wearing your ashes.
March 2: Accept today’s crosses without complaint.
March 3: Pray to St. Katherine Drexel to help us have diligence in our works of mercy and perseverance in sacrifice.
March 4: Give your loose change to the poor.
March 6: Pray an Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be for the Pope’s intentions.
March 7: Perform a random act of kindness.
March 8: Write 10 things you are thankful to God for and meditate on all the blessings
God has given you.
March 9: Listen to a Christian station instead of a secular one when you drive.
March 10: Fast from snacks for the Holy Souls in Purgatory.
March 11: Read today’s Gospel Matthew 5:43-48 and reflect on ways to show your love to your neighbors.
March 13: Pray the Rosary with your family for the End of Abortion.
March 14: Pray the Angelus at noon.
March 15: Sit and meditate for fifteen minutes in complete silence and listen to what God wants to tell you that day.
March 16: Drink only water today, no juices, sodas, or other beverages.
March 17: Pray St. Patrick’s prayer, “The Breastplate.”
March 18: Go to Confession to clean your soul before Easter or preform an Act of Contrition.
March 20: Pray to St. Joseph, today is his feast day.
March 21: Donate food for the poor and needy at your local Food Pantry.
March 22: Take some quiet time with Jesus in the Tabernacle or pray a Prayer to Jesus in the Tabernacle.
March 23: Limit your time on social media and spend more time in prayer.
March 24: Take a few minutes to appreciate the beauty of God’s work in nature.
March 25: Read the story of the Annunciation Luke 1:26-38 and meditate on Mary’s yes to God.
March 27: Read a Psalm in thanksgiving of God’s love for us.
March 28: Write a Thank You card for your parents or role model in your life.
March 29: Attend Daily Mass or pray a prayer of “Spiritual Communion.”
March 30: Read for 20 minutes a spiritual book.
March 31: : Meditate on God’s calling for you in your own life.
April 1: Write a letter to God, thanking Him for all the gifts He has given you.
April 3: Give your old clothes to the homeless shelter or clothes drive near you.
April 4: Do not give into anger; rather attempt to understand the other person’s stance
and compromise.
April 5: Fast from take-out and restaurants.
April 6: Do something nice for someone you know.
April 7: Pray the Stations of the Cross for the conversion of the world.
April 8: Volunteer your time at a local charity or your Church.
April 10: Fast from chocolate, sweets, and deserts for the poor of the world.
April 11: Give up watching your favorite TV show for the day.
April 12: Be positive instead of negative.
April 13:-Holy Thursday: Read the Lord’s Supper Luke 22: 14-34 and imagine what it would be like to partake in this supper.
April 14-Good Friday: Pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet at 3:00 pm. the hour of Christ’s death on
the Cross.
April 15-Last day of Lent: Think on how you continue to challenge yourself through sacrifice
throughout the year.
Lent is a good time for sacrificing. Let us deny ourselves something every day to help others. -Pope Francis