Lord, help us to see in your Crucifixion and Resurrection an example of how to endure and seemingly to die in the agony and conflict of daily life so that we may live more fully and creatively.
You accepted patiently and humbly the rebuffs of human lif
e, as well as the tortures of your Crucifixion and Passion. Help us to accept the pains and conflicts that come to us each day as opportunities to grow as people and become more like you. Enable us to go through them patiently and bravely, trusting that you will support us. Make us realize that it is only by frequent deaths of ourselves and our self-centered desires that we can come to live more fully; for it is only by dying with you that we can rise with you. – Mother Teresa of Calcutta
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We are ready (as can be) to enter into the desert, Lenten season. We will be keeping things simple this Lent and following our same Lenten program as last year.
We seek to be fully immersed in a life of prayer within our current state of life so that we can grow an intimate union with Christ, foster the virtues of humility and charity, and properly purge ourselves of things of this world that have been hindering our union with Him. We hope to model the Holy Family of Nazareth with the purpose of transforming our own family into a “true sanctuary of Love”.*
As always, my family has removed ourselves from all extracurriculars not related to the Church or our livelihood. Our days will be centered around prayer. We will refrain from participating in superfluous social events – leaving the home only out of necessity for our state in life, Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy, and MASS.
All technology use will be kept to a minimum. The TV that was used for videos has been removed from the home for the entire Lenten Season. My computer use will be reduced to an hour a day, after the kids are in bed. Cell phones will only be used for communication purposes and will not be used in the home unless there is an emergency. Our kids do not use the computer on a regular basis so that is a non-issue.
In addition, my family will recommit to a dietary lifestyle change that He has called us to follow, using our plan from last year. The good Lord continues to give us the graces to move down this path so that we can have a complete restoration of health and be nourished with real food – all for His glory!
Lastly, we will continue to patiently wait for Baby G to arrive this Lenten Season. His official due date is Feb. 17 but I usually go two weeks over. I pray to joyfully embrace my usual long labor (avg. 30 hrs) and offer my crosses up for the intentions of Our Blessed Mother, cause of our Joy.
This Lenten season we pray for a complete transformation, total abandonment to God’s will, with child-like trust in His fatherly care, and readiness for service in profound humility after the example of Jesus, Mary and Joseph.
We also pray that your Lenten journey be all that the good Lord wills for you and that you may joyfully cooperate with His grace.
+Ad Jesum Per Mariam+
*The foundation of our Lenten Program is based on the statutes that Dad and I seek to follow as LMC.
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Daily Family Lenten Program:
- Morning Offering
- Angelus
- Daily Readings – 1962 Roman Missal
- Lenten Reflection – Bringing Lent Home with Mother Teresa
- Angelus
- Personal Spiritual Readings
- Examen
- Rosary – Meditations by St. Louis de Montfort
- Compline
Daily Prayer Meditation & Intention:
- Mon – Souls in Purgatory & End to Abortion
- Tue – Holy Angels & Conversion of Family
- Wed – St. Joseph & Godparents & Godchildren
- Thur – Holy Eucharist & Pope Benedict XVI & Priests
- Fri – Crucifixion & The Sick
- Sat – Blessed Virgin Mary & Vocations
- Sun – Blessed Trinity & Poor, homeless, and those in great need
Family Lenten Activities:
- Review personal Lenten program chart (daily)
- Update the Sacrifice Bean Jar for sacrifices/almsgiving (daily)
- Pick Almsgiving item out of the jar (Mon.-Sat. with an emphasis on Mondays)
- Family service at parish (Saturday)
- Adoration (Thursday)
- Mass & Stations of the Cross (Friday)
- Mass (Daily until baby arrives & Sunday)
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I will add more to the resource list throughout this Lenten season if I come across additional resources that I would like to use and/or share. Please feel free to leave your suggestions in the comments.
Lenten Resources:
- Fr Goffine’s The Church’s Year ~ Ash Wednesday
- Fasting & Abstinence ~ Sight of Angels
- On Exterior Penance and Mortification ~ Evening Devotions
- What Does The Prayer Really Say?: WDTPRS: Ash Wednesday ~ Fr. Z
- Pope Benedict XVI Message for Lent 2013
- Seven Penitential Psalms
- EWTN Lenten Online Calendar
Lenten Activities & Resources for Kids:
- FREE Printable Lenten Calendar – JOYfilledfamily
- Lenten Calendar for Kids – Pondered In My Heart
- 2013 Lenten Program Chart – JOYfilledfamily
- 2013 Lent for Children Daily Display – Family, Feast & Feria
- Stations of the Cross for Children – Family, Feast, and Feria
- Printable Stations of the Cross for Kids – Loyola Press
- Stations of the Cross Coloring Booklet – CatholicMom.com
- Empty Tomb Garden – JOYfilledfamily
- Lenten Family Joy Journal – craft
- Stations of the Cross Candles – craft
- Resurrection Eggs
- Additional Traditional Lenten Resources – Sanctus Simplicitus
Other Lenten Reflections & Resources:
- St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows
- Sexagesima Sunday
- St. Matthias
- Chair of St. Peter
- Septuagesima Sunday
- Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
- The Way of the Cross
- How to Attend Mass
- Lenten Resolution Renewal – based on an Audio Sancto Sermon
- My Biggest Sacrifice
- Counsels of Perfection for CHRISTIAN MOTHERS
- SIMPLIFY
- Daily Meditations
- Pre-Lenten Recap
- Charity is…
- Lenten Calendar & Family Lenten Program
- L-E-N-T
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Now it is only right that, before we arrive at that glory of impassibility and immortality which began in Christ, and which was acquired for us through Christ, we should be shaped after the pattern of Christ’s sufferings. It is then only right that Christ’s liability to suffer should remain in us too for a time, as a means of our coming to the impassibility of glory in the way He himself came to it. ~ Meditations For Lent – St. Thomas Aquinas, (1-2 85 5 ad 2.)
Thanks for posting this! Hope you don’t mind that I already printed and laminated the family plan. We have borrowed a laminator for other purposes so I’m just looking for reasons to use it… this fit the bill so sweetly. 🙂 God bless your Lenten journey. And do. not. forget. to adjust your demands and expectations according to pregnancy and postpartum!!! No “Type A” Lent during those times…lol. Deo Gratias!
Oh Lena, thank you for the printable Lenten program chart! (I don’t remember seeing this before) We had a good family discussion but nothing in writing. I did not prepare well ahead of time to do a Lenten calendar so these will be great to help keep track and good reminder of our 3 pillars. Strong prayers going out for you and baby as you draw near to delivery! Blessed and beautiful Lent to you and family.