40 DAYS ARE ENOUGH

40 DAYS ARE ENOUGH. 
                         By Frankline Shikami 
An Analogy of Lent
Vincent meets Fr. Frank after the Eucharistic celebration during the first Sunday of lent, with a frowning face he tells him,
 "Father, today the mass was literally boring thanks to you..." 
Looking surprised father asks,
  "why do you say that Vincent?" 
He continues, 
"How could you tell the choir not to sing the Gloria, why did you even ask the guys playing instruments not to do so today, your homily was very sombre and you wore a purple garment the same you wore during a certain funeral..." 
Looking at father in the eye he asks, "Isn't it the same Fr. Frank who told us that Sunday is a mini Easter meaning celebrating our Lord?"

Father smiled, embraced the little boy and decided to apologize... However, he said in his heart, "Thank you Lord for this foretaste of heaven"

What is Lent?
What can I say in a lay man's language? The most boring time in the liturgical season or rather a season of denying myself food or a sudden change of approach in the liturgy...
Really, one could have his/ her take about it...

However, Lent is a season of prayer, reflection and fasting in order to prepare us for Christ's resurrection and for our redemption. 

It usually starts in Ash Wednesday. A time when there is symbolic applying ashes on our foreheads. Following the example of the Ninevites who did penance in "sackclothes and ashes" the priest signs our foreheads in ashes to humble our hearts and to remind us of our mortality on earth, and the only redemption is our Lord.

40 days are enough to transform a practice into a habit.
There are 3 common pillars during lent:-
        1. Prayer
        2. Fasting
        3. Almsgiving

"Who is man Lord that you keep him in mind? Mortal man that you care for him" writes the psalmist.
 It is during the season of lent that God shows us how His urge for our salvation is not only His business but also ours. Lent is given to us as a sombre season, Yes, but more importantly a reflective one. This is the only time the church requests us on what to do with our lifestyle.

Prayer
We are always called during lent not to start praying but to live prayerfully. Yes it's okay when one in their normal prayer life adds some extra time for God. But that's not enough. How about we think to live every second, minute, hour and days as a prayer? Whatever I do either to my neighbor or in a situation, I do it in a prayerful way.

Fasting.
Fasting means to forego, this time am not specific since we all have an equivalent mindset of a meal. But God is calling us to contemplate, How about we fast bad habits? How about negative minds? 
Those fasting meals are normally encouraged to share what they fasted with the needy. How about those who fasted the way of life? "Share your love to those who are close to you"

Almsgiving.
Blessed is the hand that giveth.

Honestly, 40 days are enough for us christians to make good practices and for sure, the more one does something the more it becomes a habit. 

Therefore, lent is here to help us discern God's will. The church has given us the exact figures which were given to the children of Israel before reaching the promised land.
Our promised land is quite fertile. These 40 days should be a life stepping point opportunity and not a stopping point or rather any point.

I challenge you my dear reader in this Lenten season, to look for a penance(s) write them at the corner of your heart, resolve with the Help of God to keep the practice for the rest of the forty days. After those days you may not have to "kill" yourself over the practice, because it would be a habit.

Hence lent is not just a season it's a life reflecting moment.

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