Striving for a Successful Lent — and Life
“Lent comes providentially to awaken us, to shake us from our lethargy” (Pope Francis).
“I Thirst”: Using Our Gifts to Quench Christ’s Thirst
In a message by Pope St. John Paul II for Lent 1993, the great pope called the Church to reflect on Jesus’ words, “I thirst” (John 19:28) and “Give me a drink” (John 4:7). In these words, he wrote, ‘we hear a cry from the poor, especially those who did not have access to clean water’. In a subsequent letter to the Missionaries of Charity, St. Teresa of Calcutta (then simply known as Mother Teresa) elaborated on this message:
“‘I thirst’ is something much deeper than Jesus just saying ‘I love you.’ Until you know deep inside that Jesus thirsts for you — you can’t begin to know who He wants to be [for] you. Or who He wants you to be for Him.”
This Lent, Catholic Women in Business invites you to reflect with us on how Jesus thirsts for each one of us and how we can quench His thirst — through prayer, through sacrifice, through loving His children who are most in need (and there are so many this Lent in particular!). In our content this season, we’ll be exploring how, as Catholic professionals, we can begin to understand “who He wants to be” for us, “who He wants [us] to be for Him,” and how we can share His great love for us all with everyone we encounter.
During a homily at the beginning of Lent this year, our parish priest said (I’m paraphrasing), “At the end of Lent, if you land where you were at the beginning, it was not a successful Lent.”
As harsh as it might sound, and I’m sure you could argue it or take it out of context, there is such truth in this statement. Lent is a time of spiritual cleansing, reflection, preparation, and growth, and while there are 40 days in Lent, this philosophy should be our motto year-round.
Think of the goals you set in your life: professional goals, athletic goals, monetary goals ... the list goes on. You set a goal in order to achieve the goal, and if you don’t achieve the goal, you did not succeed, plain and simple. It doesn’t mean you are a complete and utter failure; it just means you didn’t grow the way you should have or the way that you had expected.
During Lent, God has set the goal for us: He asks us to give a little something extra in order to turn away from sin and come back to Him. With that goal in mind, here are some “little extra” ways in which I strive to be better in various aspects of my life. None of them is perfect, and I do fail each day, but it’s knowing where my weaknesses are and refusing to remain stagnant that pushes me toward being better each day.
Professional
Since I stopped working full time for a corporation, I have found it so much more difficult to remain organized and task-oriented. I make my own schedule, but the desire to put off tasks until the last minute has reached a new level of absurdity.
“I can do that tonight” is something that I say more often than not. Then, tonight rolls around, and I have every excuse to put it off again. I want to do more, but I simply fall into this sin of laziness and would rather lay in bed and watch Netflix.
This Lent, I have been trying to offer up the moments of “I can do this tonight” and attempting to complete the task immediately, when I know I have time. I’m trying (“trying” being the key word) to write down my tasks and accomplish them in an orderly fashion. I know that sometimes, my procrastination can impact or affect others in their ability to complete their job, so it’s no longer about me.
Personal
I am a wife, mother, daughter, sister, and friend. Like everyone else, I have many roles and responsibilities each day. I have a tendency to clean up a mess that my kids just made and then become frustrated and take it out on my husband and children. “I just cleaned that, and now it looks like I have nothing to show for it!” Someone texts me while we’re eating dinner, and I need to respond right then and there ... and then become distracted by one thing or another on my phone.
This Lent, I’ve been looking at where I am in each moment and learning that I have the choice to make it the best moment. I can snap at my children and husband, or I can take a deep breath and realize snapping isn’t going to help make the house cleaner. I deleted social media apps for Lent and am remaining present when I’m with someone, not looking at a text or checking my phone. I’m trying hard to live moment-to-moment in this fast-paced world.
Economical
I’m not a huge impulse shopper, but I do find myself occasionally at Target or Home Goods thinking, “I need that.” I have tried to find more peace in what I truly need and separating it from what I want. Treating myself on occasion at Target or Home Goods is fine, but during these 40 days, I’m trying to reshape what it is that I find important, and what is important in my life does not revolve around material things.
I used to walk around stores after work before I picked up my oldest from school. Now, I avoid the temptation altogether and bypass the store unless I truly need something for myself or my family.
Spiritual
I’ve never been able to just sit down and read a book. I am easily distracted and have quite a few books I have started but never finished. Recently, I started reading “Searching For and Maintaining Peace” by Father Jacques Philippe, and it is so refreshing. Knowing that God has called each of us to a life of interior peace is something that is mind-blowing, because over the past year, everything has seemed chaotic.
Stepping back and seeing that my interior life and my spiritual life have so much room for growth has drawn me more into my prayer life and led me to seek opportunities to dive deeper in personal relationships.
Now, I return to what our parish priest said, but I’ll change “Lent” to “life”: If, at the end of my life, I am no better than I was at the start, did I lead a successful life?
Colleen Godinez is a freelance copywriter living in Kansas City. She graduated from Kansas State University with a BS in psychology and a minor in journalism and mass communication. In her spare time, she loves laughing with friends and family and finding new wines to sip on (sparkling rose on warmer days). She has learned to appreciate the little things in life and soaks up every moment she can with her two kids and husband. You can follow her on Facebook or Instagram.