Lent Thread (2020)

[NEET.dreams 49]

I decided to observe Lent this year by giving up video games. This is the longest I've gone without gaming since as far back as I can remember, since I was 3 years old at least. I'm itching like a junkie but I have been getting a lot of work done around the house. To clarify, I've only given up playing games. I'm still buying them like a fiend. 

Anyone else celebrating Lent this year?

[Richardhead 2,235]

Oh man! You scared me for a second. Glad you’re still buying. Don’t think I could give up playing or buying games for 40 days.

[NEET.dreams 49]

13 minutes ago, Richardhead said:

Oh man! You scared me for a second. Glad you’re still buying. Don’t think I could give up playing or buying games for 40 days.

This has actually been the start of me collecting sealed game. Can't play the games if they're sealed.

[Scrobins 1,417]

This year I gave up being angry for Lent.

Lately I've found myself getting really really pissed off when someone/something annoys me such as when I'm getting lunch and I can't get somewhere because the food court near my office is full of tourists walking 3 abreast, slowly, staring at their phones, or I'm crossing the street and a car nearly runs me down to beat the light, my girlfriend tells me about everyone who harassed her today, etc. I'm not great with my emotions and I tend to bottle them up, which means I seem really happy-go-lucky to most people I know, while I'm raging on the inside.

I hate that I do this; I know that so much is stuff outside my control as well as me failing to consider the perspective of others. So when I feel myself getting angry over something trivial, I force myself to stop and think "do I do this sometimes?" or "is it possible there is a good reason that happened?" It's been hard so far, but I've found myself feeling generally happier about life day-to-day.

[Gloves 10,348]

I'm gonna give up Lent for Lent.

[Scrobins 1,417]

18 minutes ago, Gloves said:

I'm gonna give up Lent for Lent.

Makes me think of one of my favorite scenes from King of the Hill

Edited March 10, 2020 by Scrobins

[Gloves 10,348]

[zombiemicrowave 42]

I'm not a religious person but I am really looking forward to hitting some fish frys.

[NEET.dreams 49]

Boy did I pick a hell of a year to give this up. 

[RH 4,217]

1 hour ago, NEET.dreams said:

Boy did I pick a hell of a year to give this up. 

Why do we do lent? To pray and prepare for Easter, which is the celebration of the Resurrection. Through our minor "suffering", we are reminded of Christ's suffering to the cross. When we long for what we've given up, it's a reminder of our greater need for Christ.

But, this Lent season is a special one.  We're all being forced to stay home and our options for distractions are being limited.  This might sound crazy, but I recommend you try to pray a bit more, read scripture and draw closer to Jesus. The church has an opportunity for significant spiritual growth in this season, especially as we pray for our communities, our nation and the whole world for a great need of wisdom and healing. 

Furthermore, helping those in need is largely the intended work of the church.  I think this is not only a good opportunity to focus more in prayer, but it's also an excellent time for us to be less selfish (because I sure can be) and ask around if the people in our immediate neighborhoods need help and assistance.  IMHO, there's no better way to celebrate lent and going into Easter than to have an opportunity to slow down, draw close to God and "feed the widows"... literally!  There are probably a lot of older people in your community.  They may be scared, and have a right to be be--if they are 70+, they are most at risk.  They also aren't as tech savvy so "post mating" food isn't an option, especially if they are on social security.  Maybe this isn't an option for you, but try to find a way to help those families.  They are going to need it.  IMHO, Easter is about Christ's sacrifice so that we may have a new life in Him, that meets all our needs through His free gift.  This is an opportunity to be a part of the doing of what we are celebrating.

[Code Monkey 1,755]

On 3/9/2020 at 5:53 PM, Scrobins said:

This year I gave up being angry for Lent.

I'm crossing the street and a car nearly runs me down to beat the light

If the light is about to turn red, all walk signals should be off.

[ICrappedMyPants 301]

I gave up being negative about work for Lent. It has definitely helped me have a better attitude in general. However, working from home with two toddlers is testing me. My Archdiocese just announced that there will be no public Masses through Holy Week. My wife and I are trying our best to help the kids still stay in church mode on Sundays. We’ve been all dressing up while watching on tv and saying the responses.

[Gloves 10,348]

So far I'm doing a solid job in my "no Lent for Lent" initiative. 

[captmorgandrinker 1,563]

57 minutes ago, ICrappedMyPants said:

I gave up being negative about work for Lent. It has definitely helped me have a better attitude in general. However, working from home with two toddlers is testing me. My Archdiocese just announced that there will be no public Masses through Holy Week. My wife and I are trying our best to help the kids still stay in church mode on Sundays. We’ve been all dressing up while watching on tv and saying the responses.

I was gonna say, depending on how modern your parish is they may do a streaming Mass at least on Sundays.   There's a few around here that are technologically set up for that.

[ICrappedMyPants 301]

This has been a truly humbling Lent for me being essentially on lockdown at home. We’ve been upping our prayers compared to usual and I’ve been much less negative about the flaws of the leaders of my religion, Catholic hierarchy, and really focused on praying for the world and those most affected and vulnerable. It’s really helped me put into perspective the most important things about our relationship with God and helped me to genuinely pray for those whose actions frustrate me. 

[CasualCart 6,089]

@Scrobins and @ICrappedMyPants - huge props for the more 'psychological' Lenten resolutions of curbing your anger and negativity. I'm guilty of just giving up something material most years (this year, for instance, I'm limiting my Youtube/Netflix time), and I often find myself just gravitating to an equally wasteful/unproductive replacement (like retro game forums haha). I'd like to try following your example next time around to strengthen my mentality a bit more.

This is certainly an unprecedented Lenten season with the pandemic going on, but maybe it'll have the effect of making us all a little more reflective and reverent.

It's also an interesting paradox that church closures have left me watching Sunday mass on YouTube despite my Lenten resolution to give up YouTube haha.

-CasualCart

[NEET.dreams 49]

Had a dream last night that I started playing Fallout 2. A few minutes in I realized it was still lent and I had blown all my progress. Woke up in a panic and realized it was all okay.

I would really like to play video games right now. 

 

[Scrobins 1,417]

On 3/31/2020 at 7:34 PM, CasualCart said:

I'd like to try following your example next time around to strengthen my mentality a bit more.

Here’s an idea you might like to help. A few years ago I started praying the rosary 4 times each week (one for each of the series of mysteries). I experimented with when and how I went about so that I could use it to de-stress and practice mindfulness: sitting at home while listening to relaxing music, while on an exercise bike, but what worked for me was doing it on my walk home from work.

Edited April 2, 2020 by Scrobins

[CasualCart 6,089]

1 hour ago, Scrobins said:

Here’s an idea you might like to help. A few years ago I started praying the rosary 4 times each week (one for each of the series of mysteries). I experimented with when and how I went about so that I could use it to de-stress and practice mindfulness: sitting at home while listening to relaxing music, while on an exercise bike, but what worked for me was doing it on my walk home from work.

Excellent - funny that you should suggest that, because the other part of my Lenten resolution has been to pray a rosary each day during my morning jog. It definitely presents a great opportunity to calm down and clear my head before I start my day. It's a great exercise in mindfulness, for sure!

-CasualCart