Lent and the Question I Can’t Answer
Every year around this time, someone asks me the same well-intended question: “So… what are you giving up for Lent?” And every year, I hesitate. Not because the question is wrong—but because I don’t have a neat answer. I’ve tried. I’ve really tried. Chocolate. Social media. Coffee. Late nights. Complaining. Sugar. You name it. And almost without fail, somewhere between Ash Wednesday and Holy Week, I break. I forget. I justify. I rationalize. I fail. And the more I try to do Lent right, the more Lent exposes how bad I am at self-discipline. Maybe that’s the point. Lent Was Never About Impressing God Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount have always unsettled me: “When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do… Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.” (Matthew 6:16) Notice He doesn’t say if you fast—but when. And yet He also warns us about turning spiritual disciplines into public performances. Somehow, Lent has become a season ...