40 days of lent: Family Faith Practices
Have you ever celebrated lent with your family? Maybe not at all? Well, tomorrow is Ash Wednesday. Check out some ideas Pastor Becca has for how your family can celebrate Lent together this year.
1. Read Jesus’ Sermon on The Mount as a family. Matthew 5-7
2. Pray for your enemies or someone who has persecuted you.
3. Don’t waste any food today
4. Pay 3 people a sincere compliment
5. Tithe your time: Spend 10% of your time (2.5 hours) serving at church. (This could be weeding the parking lot, cleaning the bathrooms and vacuuming, or asking a pastor for a way to serve)
6. Listen to someone who seems lonely
7. Take 5 minutes of silence before you eat dinner
8. Celebrate! Enjoy a family game night
9. Do someone else’s chore for them without being asked
10. Spend 10 minutes writing out a prayer to God
11. Forgive someone
12. Tithe your money: Give 10% of the money you made that week to the church, helping people in need in the name of Jesus.
13. Thank God for 20 blessings in your life
14. Call a friend you haven’t spoken to in a while
15. Give up social media for a day
16. Tell someone in your family something you love about them
17. Ask someone to pray for you
18. Ask to pray for someone
19. Take communion
20. Buy a couple $5 gift cards to gas stations to give to the families living in their cars at the church
21. Purge your closets, donating unnecessary items to the goodwill
22. Apologize
23. Donate some books or art supplies to your local elementary school
24. Write someone an email, telling them you appreciate them.
25. Turn off your T.V. and go outside
26. Pray for your church
27. Bake cookies for someone
28. Read Psalm 139 as a family before dinner
29. Ask God for help
30. Introduce yourself, or reconnect with one of your neighbors
31. Have someone over for dinner
32. Walk, ride a bike, or take public transportation to work/school
33. Thank someone who is in leadership for their service (Like a pastor, teacher, police, etc)
34. Cook dinner together as a family
35. Pray for the current events in the news
36. Don’t turn on music during your car ride- enjoy conversation or silence
37. Go for a walk or hike as a family
38. Ask God to help you know Him more
39. Spend 10 minutes praying for someone you work with/ go to school with
40. Read the Easter story John 18, 19, 20
About The Author:
Becca McCaryBecca is a children's pastor and part of the preaching team at Washington Cathedral. She writes on motherhood, spirituality, and biblical interpretation. She also has her own personal blog with resources for mothers and Sunday School teachers. |