Making A Lenten Sacrifice

February 26, 2025

If you’ve been a member of our parish of the airwaves for years now, you probably know that I often write a Lenten message discussing the importance of sacrificing something during this holy time to make room in our hearts for Christ. And this is something I believe wholeheartedly! But I also think we need to think carefully about the idea of “making a sacrifice.” 

It’s easy to look at the Lenten sacrifice as an obligation of religion instead of seeing it as a rite of faith. But that’s a mistake. The Lenten sacrifice gives us an opportunity to grow in faith through the longing for a beloved activity, food, or object. A sacrifice in this season, made in faith, should be something that will be difficult and something we’ll miss.

But in that longing, we can turn to God through prayer to overcome the temptations we face as a result of what we have given up. This is a wonderful opportunity to turn our lives over to God as we face the struggle of keeping our commitments to our Lenten sacrifice. 

But it even goes beyond that. This is an opportunity to understand, even in a small way, the journey that Christ faced during his 40 days of temptation. His sacrifice is greater than one that any of us could possibly imagine. But through our own Lenten sacrifice, we can at least get a glimpse of Jesus’s suffering for us. We can be more grateful for that gift by making sacrifices of our own. 

So, as we begin Lent this month and you begin to prepare your heart for Easter, I hope you will keep the Sunday Mass at Mercy Home community of faith in your daily prayers. And in return, know that you have a place in my prayers and in the prayers of the entire Mercy Home family.