Hello everyone,

A few days ago, as I was driving my friends’ kids home from school, Vincent, an 8-year old suddenly asked me: "What are you going to give up this Lent?" Before I can say anything, he eagerly told me that he had decided to give up playing Nintendo game during Lent. He said: "I was choosing between giving up TV and Nintendo,... and I picked Nintendo!" He said that with such enthusiasm and excitement that it almost put me to shame. You see, I have not even thought about giving up any thing for Lent yet, and this little boy is actually excited about giving up his favorite enjoyment. This simple incident led me to take a closer look at myself. Here I am, several decades older than Vincent, with so much more "wisdom" and experience under my "belt," yet I have forgotten how great it was to tackle life through the eyes of a child - carefree, so willing, and full of amazement! So I asked myself, "what exactly do I want to give up this Lent?" and "what are some things I can do to make Lent most meaningful for me?" These are tough questions, they required some serious thinking on my part.

Dear friends, during this month of March, as we continue our Lenten journey, let’s explore some of the many ways that can help us observe Lent most meaningfully. Lent is a time for us to step back and take a deeper look within ourselves; to re-examine the way we live, our weaknesses, our strength, and our flaws. It is a time to realize whether we are close to or far from God - does God occupy a place in our hearts, our lives? Lent is the time to return to God with a sincere and contrite heart. You see, God, our Loving Father is calling us. He’s longing for us to come to Him with our hearts, whether broken or whole. He wants to hold each and every one of us close to His Heart and to heal us. He’s calling out for us: "Even now, says the Lord, return to me with your whole heart, with fasting, weeping and mourning. Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the Lord, your God. For gracious and merciful is He, slow to anger, rich in kindness and relenting in punishment..." (Joel 2: 12-14)

Let’s walk this journey together, you and I, as we continue to follow Jesus in the path of love. Lent is not just about fasting, repentance, sacrifices, self-denial, and conversion... more than that, Lent is about recognizing how much God so loves us, to the point of death! Furthermore, it is about recognizing that through such suffering, Jesus has won "the" eternal reward for us - Salvation! In other words, Jesus, through his suffering and death, had purchased for us eternal happiness! I haven’t met any one in this world who does not want to be happy. Well, we can achieve eternal happiness through Jesus Christ. During Lent, the Church invites us to be in union with Jesus, to rely on Jesus’ strength and faith in order to face our own weaknesses and sufferings so that through Him, we too may enjoy His victory over sins. I have compiled a list of suggestions that might help us experience a meaningful season of Lent. I hope it’s useful for you. God bless you & keep you!

* Smile, Jesus loves you!

During night prayer, help them remember 1 or 2 "bad things" they did during the day and teach them to ask God for forgiveness.

Encourage them to do at least 1 good thing each day. During dinner, each person takes turn sharing with the family what good thing he/she did that day.

Suggest that they eat no candies/chocolate, and drink no soda on weekdays; give away one or two decent toys to the poor; volunteer to do 1 extra chore at home; do a kind act to a friend from school; cut back on watching TV; etc.

Encourage them to share a special talent with others (drawing, singing, playing the piano, doing gymnastic, etc. for grandparents, friends, relatives to watch)

Pick a meaningful yet easy to understand passage from the Bible and teach them to say it and remember to act on it for one week (ex: "Love is patient, love is kind.")

For children 7 - 12 yr. old:

Plant seeds/bulbs and watch them blossom to new life as Lent progresses toward Easter.

Over the weekend, let them pick one good behavior to do throughout the week (ex: clean up their plate mat right after they finish eating, put away their toys after playing, set the table, help a friend in school, etc.)

Give up certain TV times to read the Children’s Bible, eat less sweet treats, less snacks, .

Save up some allowance money for the needy or for a good cause.

Each week, focus on one "bad attitude" and try to work on it (ex: obeying mom right away, no disrespectful talking back, no gossiping, no yelling at younger siblings, no annoying remarks at older siblings, no throwing clothes all over the room, etc.)

During each morning prayer, ask God for the grace to be a better, more loving person. During night prayer, say the Act of Contrition (Kinh Ăn Năn Tội) with the whole family.

At the end of each week, make a point to write down the "high" and "low" points of the week in a journal, how successful or unsuccessful were their efforts. Ask God for strength and guidance.

Learn how to apologize willingly and sincerely when you made a mistake or hurt someone.

For age 13 - 19:

Each Monday, read the Gospel reading for the coming Sunday Mass and try to reflect on it throughout the week. Pray for the grace to put what you read to practice - to live the Word of God.

Each night, try to review your whole day, remember the good things and bad things that happened during the day and know that God was with you throughout each event and He wants to teach you something through each experience. Thank God for all the "gifts" he gave you throughout the day, ask forgiveness for your sins and pray for the grace to be a better person tomorrow.

Make sacrifices by talking less on the phone or refrain from surfing the Net unnecessarily, keep your gossiping, gum chewing, shopping under control (believe it or not, you can survive without them). Refrain from foul languages, sarcastic comments or rude remarks.

Take shorter showers to conserve water; eat out less; clean up your room more.

Substitute sexual related activities with some healthy sports (aerobics, basketball, dance.).

Receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Eucharist as often as possible (this will surely heal and strengthen you)

Keep a prayer journal and write down your thoughts, your emotions, joy, sorrow, worries and fears. As you write these things down, offer them up to the Lord and ask Him to bless you and guide you.

Spend some extra time with your parents, help them with household chores (take out the trash, wash the dishes, rake the leaves.)

Listen more, talk less.

Tell your parents you love them (and watch their eyes light up!)

Make an extra effort to befriend a shy classmate, or show a kind act toward someone in need.

These are just a few suggestions for us to use during Lent as ways to express our wanting to walk closer with Jesus during this Lenten Season. The "age categories" are just general guidelines, please use any ideas that you see fit for you. May God bless you abundantly in your efforts.