Every year, Lent seems to sneak up on us.
One minute it’s January goals and fresh planners, and the next it’s ashes, fasting, and the quiet question in the back of our minds: Wait… what am I doing again?
If you’ve ever approached Lent with a mix of motivation, guilt, excitement, dread, or confusion, you’re not alone. But Lent was never meant to be a spiritual performance.
It’s not about being intense.
It’s not about proving something.
It’s not even mainly about giving things up.
Lent is about getting free.
It’s a holy stretch of time where we step out of Egypt, out of slavery to habits, distractions, and impulses, and begin walking toward resurrection life. And if we approach it intentionally, it can truly reshape our thoughts, relationships, and inner world.
Here are four practical ways to get the most out of Lent this year, without burning out.
1. Treat Lent Like the “Tithe” of Your Year
Lent is roughly 40 days (plus the Sundays and Holy Week), about a tenth of the year.
What if you viewed it as the tithe of your time?
Not to earn God’s love (He already loves you) but to intentionally create space to receive that love.
The book of Epistle to the Hebrews gives us language for this season. Hebrews isn’t about trying harder. It’s about drawing near. It reminds us that Jesus is our High Priest, our mediator, the One who opens the way.
You don’t climb to God during Lent. God draws you near.
When you think of Lent as “giving back” a tenth of your time and attention, everything shifts. It becomes less about deprivation and more about relationship.
And if you miss a day? You don’t spiral. You come back.
That’s the whole theme of Lent anyway.
2. Reclaim Your Attention With a Digital Fast
Let’s be honest. One of the biggest threats to our interior life right now is constant input. Social media. News. Notifications. Endless scrolling. Podcasts. Shows. Alerts. Texts at the worst possible time. We are flooded.
One of the most powerful Lenten practices for modern believers is a digital fast. Not to become extreme, but to reclaim attention.
Here are a few simple ideas:
- No social media before noon
- No phone in the bedroom
- One screen-free evening per week
- Delete (or mute) the apps that hijack your mind
When Jesus entered the wilderness in the Gospel of Gospel of Matthew, He faced temptation in silence, not noise. He overcame not through brute force, but through obedience and truth. Adam failed in a garden full of food. Christ was faithful in a wilderness with none.
Fasting trains the soul to say: “I don’t live by impulse. I live by God.” Silence clears the static so we can actually listen.
3. Keep It Keepable (Not Impressive)
So many people “fail” Lent because they choose a plan built on adrenaline and guilt.
They go all in for four days…Then collapse. And shame replaces growth.
Here’s a better approach: Keep it keepable.
A small, consistent prayer rule will change you more than an epic spiritual routine done for five days.
Lent is not a performance. It’s training. Training works when it’s humble, consistent, sustainable, and honest.
Try to pick one simple addition to your prayer life:
- Five minutes of silence
- The Jesus Prayer repeated slowly
- The Lord’s Prayer prayed intentionally
- A short Scripture passage prayed through (Lectio Divina style)
Choose a time. Choose a place. Show up. And when you fail, come back.
4. Practice the Three R’s: Reflection, Repentance, and Reconciliation
If you did nothing else this Lent but commit to these three things, your heart would change.
The 3 R’s are simple, but they reach deep: reflection, repentance, and reconciliation.
Reflection: What Is Forming Me?
Lent invites us to slow down and look inward. What’s been shaping my thoughts lately? What patterns are forming me? What am I becoming?
Reflection isn’t self-criticism. It’s awareness. It’s asking God to gently show you what’s happening in your interior world.
You might journal once a week. Or simply sit in silence and ask: “Lord, what’s going on inside me?”
Without reflection, we drift. With reflection, we grow intentionally.
Repentance: What Needs to Change Direction?
Repentance isn’t shame. It’s reorientation. The word literally means to turn. To change direction. To step back toward the Father.
In the story of the Prodigal Son, the son doesn’t clean himself up first. He simply comes home.
Repentance sounds like:
- “Lord, I’ve been impatient.”
- “I’ve been numb.”
- “I’ve been distracted.”
- “I’ve been living on autopilot.”
- “Help me turn.”
Lent is not about self-hatred. It’s about surrender.
Reconciliation: Who Needs Peace?
This is often the hardest one. Who do I need to forgive? Who do I need to ask forgiveness from? Where have I allowed distance, bitterness, or ego to grow?
Forgiveness is a form of almsgiving of the heart. It costs you something. But it frees you.
Sometimes reconciliation is a conversation. Sometimes it’s a prayer. Sometimes it’s simply releasing someone to God. Lent isn’t mainly about the stomach. It’s about the heart being restored to love.
If you keep these three rhythms, reflection, repentance, and reconciliation, woven into your weeks, you will not walk through Lent unchanged.
Final Encouragement
If you want to get the most out of Lent, keep it doable, honest, consistent, and centered on love.
This is not a season to prove yourself. It’s a season to meet God. And if you fail? Come back. That’s the whole journey.
Want to Go Deeper?
This message comes from Episode 9 of The Bible Made Real With Kathy podcast: “How to Get the Most Out of Lent.”
You can watch or listen wherever you get your podcasts, and subscribe to Kathy’s email list for free Bible study tools and weekly devotionals.
