I'm Giving Up ...

Christians give things up for Lent as a form of sacrifice, self-denial, or self-improvement in order to grow in their relationship with God or to be more like Him. The notion of the 40 day sacrifice comes from Jesus' 40 days of fasting in the desert following His baptism (see Matthew 4: 1 - 11).

During the season of Lent, we choose to voluntarily give up an item of food or drink, or an unhealthy habit, as a spiritual discipline in order to help us grow in our faith and dependence on the Lord.

Please see my posts on Day 10 and Day 11 if you'd like to read more on this topic.

Day 13

Instead of a devotional today, I thought I'd offer some suggestions of things to "give up" for Lent. These are just some ideas to help those of you who may not have decided what to give up yet, or who may have realised that just giving up sweets isn't a meaningful type of fast for this season.

And don't worry that we're already on Day 13 of Lent - it's never a bad time to let go of something that's going to help you in the long run.

30 (Meaningful) Things to Give Up for Lent

1. Fear, doubt, or worry

2. That sin you’ve been holding onto

3. The bad habit or addiction you haven’t kicked

4. Your pride or ego

5. Time (Volunteer for a cause)

6. Anger

7. Unforgiveness

8. Comparison

9. Gossipping

10. Complaining

11. The snooze button

12. Constant negativity

13. Texting while driving

14. Driving over the speed limit

15. Checking your phone first thing in the morning

16. Any app or website you waste too much time on

17. Being late for appointments

18. Fast food, junk food, or take out

19. Using screens after 8pm

20. Having to have things your way

21. Alcohol

22. Non-essential spending

23. Skipping church

24. Clutter (donate 40 things over 40 days)

25. Multi-tasking (give people your full attention)

26. Buying single-use plastics

27. Interrupting others

28. Telling white lies or half truths

29. Not exercising

30. Pressing the snooze button

If you'd like to approach this concept from another direction, here's another list:

Things to Add For Lent

1. Reading your Bible regularly

2. Reading a Bible study or daily devotions

3. Praying for the people you said you're praying for

4. Going to church or home group regularly

5. Memorizing a particular Scripture over the next 23 days

6. Getting some exercise

7. Calling your parents or grandparents

8. Doing 40 random acts of kindness

9. Phoning or texting someone you know is lonely

10. Replacing one of your mealtimes with reading the Bible