Ready For Lent

Well, this has not been an easy task. I have truly given this serious consideration, thought and prayer. I have read pages and pages of links on what to give up for Lent and I've talked to many people. I finally came across an article that basically reminded me, Lent is a time of repentence and the idea of repenting is not to just do it for the period of Lent but to make a change that lasts and to focus on an aspect of sin you seem to have a particular problem with. Well, the list seems long with me but I started to think envy & making judgements about others is somewhere near the top of that list. Envy seems to creep in in mild ways ("wow, I wish I was so thin"..."I would kill to have that"..."I have got to get one of those") but it plants a bad seed that grows. Sure, you can rationalize that it encourages someone to do better but aren't there better ways of doing that? Passing judgement - do I really need to expand upon that?? It so innocently comes out but it's not constructive - it only serves to separate us and show one person as better than the other. So those (envy & passing judgment) are going to be the things I strive to give up, not just for Lent, but for good. What AM I thinking, right?? It ain't gonna be easy but if it was, I guess I would have done it already, don't you think??

As for the rest of Lent, I have some weak spiritual areas...you non-Catholics may glaze over but I really feel I need to do the Rosary regularly and do the Stations of the Cross - things I have never done since I wasn't raised Catholic, I converted about 6 years ago. I know how much my faith has helped me and I want to see it grow. So here goes! I'm not as adverturous as Karen I suppose, but it's all about what we each need to work on (that's my first effort to not by envious!). Wish me luck and don't hesitate to call me on it if you see me being envious or judging someone!!!