I'm giving up giving up for Lent

I'm still not drinking this week. Day three. No problems there although it has been awhile since I've gone a week without a drink. I'm not drinking because I'm running in the LA Marathon this Sunday. But a lot of people are giving up vices this time of year in recognition of Lent.

Rather than giving up, the better Lenten practice is to take something on. Lent isn't about reducing our life, it's about adding to our life, specifically, adding an intentional period of meditation: meditation on who we are, who we wish to be, and what we're going to do with this one life. Even for those who choose to give something up, the point isn't in the self-denial; the point is in the space that we open up to shift our thoughts and actions into an area we would otherwise never get to.

Deciding to add something to your spiritual practice can actually make this meditative task easier. You could add 40 days of journaling, 40 days of getting up a half hour earlier for some prayer time, 40 days of volunteer work, 40 days of reading some good book you hadn't gotten to, 40 days of quality family time, 40 days of exercise. You might even develop a habit that you would decide to continue beyond the 40 days ending at Easter.

if all you do is give up you aren't going to accomplish much of value. But shifting your time into a spiritual practice, or directly into living more of the life that you want to live, will make this season worth your attention.