Lenten Resolutions

So tomorrow is Ash Wednesday. Hard to believe it's here already. Lent always seems to sneak up on me; just when I am getting complacent in the February dullness. It's a really good opportunity to reorient myself and reinvigorate myself spiritual focus. Like many others, I suspect, I am no good at this self-denial thing. Either I choose something really drastic (like going from three cups of coffee a day to none...caffeine withdrawal headache anyone?) or I completely lose focus of why I am giving something up because I am completely caught up in trying to abstain from my favorite sugar, junk food, or social networking indulgence. I am truly amazed at people who can remain faithful to their Lenten sacrifice while also keeping the meaning of this sacrifice foremost in their mind.

So today, on Fat Tuesday, I am reflecting on what I should give up or do, this Lent. As I write this though, I am realizing that it is not as much as what I decide I should do, but what God is calling me to do. How He is asking me to purify my life, even in the little things. One Lenten resolution that came to me this morning is for me to strive to spend 30 minutes a day in personal prayer. Although I have been more or less able to do morning and sometimes evening prayer on my commute to work, I think it would be incredibly transformative to spend more quite time in prayer listening to the Lord. Wrapped up in this goal will simultaneously be some sort of self-denial required for me to find this extra time in my day. I guess it will either mean waking up a half an hour earlier each day (eek!) or by passing my normal evening activity of surfing Facebook. I am hoping to find a good Lenten devotional through which I can focus my prayer. If you have any suggestions of good devotionals, I would love to hear them.

Here's to a blessed, grace-filled, transformative Lent to all of you!