Lent 2025

A season like Lent has always appealed to me. A limited time to step up my game was an invitation I readily accepted only to find myself giving up or limping my way into church on Easter because I tried to do too much or gave up too much.

This year, I’m focusing all my attention on a simple question: In what direction am I headed? It’s a question that can be applied to all facets of one’s life – professional, relational, physical, and, yes, spiritual. Broad in scope, the question looks at progress over perfection, not where one arrives, but where he or she is headed. 

·      In what direction are my relationships headed? Am I taking them for granted, or am I putting renewed effort into them? Are their some that need special attention?

·      In what direction am I headed professionally (or vocationally)? Am I making a difference? Am I being challenged or am I just going through the motions of doing things I’ve always done?

·      Am I growing healthier or not? Do I push my body at all, or do I prefer to sit on the couch watching Netflix eating Bon Bons?

·      And what about my faith? Am I growing closer or more distant to God? What do I do because of my faith, if anything at all? What don’t I do because of my faith?

Somehow, the question frees me of an overwhelming to-do list. It focuses on my intentions and, from that, things will be done, or not done, depending on the direction in which I am headed. I believe, in the end, this will be an effective new approach to this important season.

Focusing on my direction is simple but profound. Who knows, I might even be in a new place come Easter, which has always been the intention of the season.