This week, Fourth Class teacher Mary Dougherty Reepmeyer ’96 shares her reflections of Lent as well as heart-felt responses from some of her students.
Every Lent challenges us to become closer to God, which means to trust Him, repent, and change. Change can be a difficult thing especially in these busy times. We get stuck in autopilot and move along each day through our usual habits. However, each year while educating my students about Lent, I continually tell them it is my favorite liturgical season of the church year. This is because it gives me an opportunity to slow down, create a plan for change, and feel closer to Jesus. I take this opportunity to set goals which help me increase my prayer life and practice making small sacrifices. I encourage them to do the same on their own Lenten journeys.
In religion class, my Fourth Class students have been rereading the Bible readings from each Sunday, watching short videos on Lent, journaling, and establishing Lenten promises. I had them reflect and write about what Lent means to them and was in awe of how much they have understood and discovered about this season over the past week. I hope these reflections inspire you during this sacred time of recommitment to recognize our presence in this world as disciples of Jesus.
Lent is a time of sacrifice when we remember what Jesus did for us. In Lent, we dedicate ourselves to become closer to God. Lent is forty days of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving to prepare ourselves for fifty days of celebration! We push away distractions to build our relationship with God. Lent is a time to forgive others and repent.
— Caroline B.
To me Lent means sacrificing because you are giving up things daily. Second, dedication, because you keep trying to give up that item. Lastly, prayer, because we pray more and remember that Jesus died on the cross on Good Friday.
— Vinny K.
Lent is a time of penance and sacrifice. During Lent you sacrifice something you love to remember the sacrifice that Jesus made for us. He made that sacrifice because he loves us so much. So always be willing to let Jesus in your heart. Jesus gave his life for us to be free so the least you and I can do for him is to love him over all things and pray to him. Let Jesus help you in hard times instead of blocking him out. Love Jesus the way he loves us.
— Meghan B.
Lent is a time of sacrificing something we love so we can be closer to God our Father. In Lent we open our hearts to Jesus. Lent might be a struggle for you, but like Jesus didn’t give in to the Devil when he was in the desert, don’t give in to the temptation! Surely this Lent when you want to give in, remember that Jesus gave up his life for us.
— Amelia W.
Lent is a time to sacrifice things we value for God. During Lent we repent and ask for forgiveness. These forty days represent the forty days Jesus spent in the desert resisting the temptations from the Devil. Even though it is a challenge we should all make this sacrifice to God.
— Selin M.
To me Lent means that I will always have challenges. I might struggle, but I will always pray to Jesus. During Lent, I always give up something and I thank Jesus for sacrificing his life for us. He wanted to free us from sin. I ask the Lord for forgiveness whenever I sin and I thank him for each day.
— M.J. M.
