Maybe you're an honorary Holy Chick who should be giving TED talks on How To Succeed at Lent (if so, call me--I need you), but in case you're not and still need a little encouragement to cross that finish line about Fasting--here it is.
Mind Games: Understanding the Adolescent Brain
Mamas Of Lent, Despair Not! (Because We Have A Lot To Offer)
...So what am I saying? Well first, I”ll clarify what I’m not saying: I’m not saying be complacent, lazy, ignorant of the season or disregard it or to give up on things you feel in your heart you should—do what God says for goodness’ sakes. I’m imploring you though, Mamas and Ladies Of The Land: expand your hearts, deepen your senses of hearing, seeing, and helping God in others and in all situations this Lent and it will carry into the rest of your life. We’ll slip and struggle but that’s another reminder of what we always are, not just during Lent: imperfect without Him, but working on getting there, and loved as all get-out. I’m going to challenge us, not because I have any more of a right than any other woman of God, but because if we want to grow, we often need each other to do so...
For Lent This Year, Build a Habit (and Why I Think “Motivation” is a 4-Letter Word)
...But isn’t that what we all do most lents? Actually, for me, I’ve often given up coffee, which turns out to be my wife’s sacrifice—putting up with me when I have not had caffeine—but I swear I’m not addicted! We give up something (usually food) that we do a bit too much of, and forty days later we usually go back to the same old habits we’ve always had. Fasting, of course, is an essential part of Lent; making a temporary sacrifice to put us in the mindset of Christ’s sacrifice is obviously a good thing. But what if it didn’t have to be the same pattern we repeat multiple times a year? (You know the usual cycle: we fail our New Year’s resolutions, and then pick them up with a new determination during Lent, only to forget about the whole thing by the time Summer hits). Wouldn’t it be better if you changed something about yourself—even something very small—for good?...
Has the cost of therapy ever kept you from going?
Fully Alive Parenting
Meetings: 12 Step Basics
"...
So how do you know you belong in a meeting? The 12 Traditions of the 12 Step programs address this in Tradition 3: The only requirement for (A.A.) membership is a desire to stop (drinking). Thus, eligibility to attend is based off of having a common problem and having the desire to be free of it. It really is that simple..."
Does a step-by-step approach to becoming holy exist?
...The good news is, YES! Our Lord himself gave us a step-by-step approach to holiness when he said, “If anyone wants to become my follower, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24). These words of Jesus have resounded in the hearts of men and women for 2,000 years. They present to us a practical, concrete path to becoming a follower of Jesus. Many believe they lay down a lifelong project of spiritual growth divided into three practical steps...
Sometimes We're Enough
"I drowned myself in trying to be perfect in all areas of life. At any given time, I was an Editor In Chief in yearbook, in honor choir, jazz band, head cheerleader for Fall, youth group volunteer, head soprano at church—never once did it cross my mind that I was…enough. Never once was the gentle breeze of Truth allowed to enter my reality that in all of my asking to be enough, God was actually answering my prayers and preparing me for my future life filled with love. So much love He had in the plans, that years later, I’d be begging Him to be filled with even more on the days where I fall so utterly short. And many, many of my days are spent pleading with God to give me more ability to love what I don’t deserve to have, and thanking Him for His abundance. Let me be clear: God doesn't give only to those who are “just holy” or “really good people.” Remember—I tried to be that for many years. You know what I found? He gives because He loves. And, He gives because we ask, and we ask with faith. To this moment, when I ask Him to bless and protect my family, I say, “Father, my family is just as special as any of your children and I don’t ask because I think we are more so. I ask because You love me, and I am Your child, and You desire what is good." I ask my Father, and He responds the best way…"
Let's Talk About Teens
"...if a teen is struggling in making friends, is being bullied, or isolates at school and if the teen is experiencing an issue both at school and at home, they may benefit from therapy discussing depression, low self-esteem, or possibly anxiety. Perhaps this is displayed in missing school, dropping grades, loss of interests, and acting out at home. On the other hand, if a teen is able to talk about these things at home or with parents, have other friends or support/other activities outside of school or outside of the tough situation successfully—theoretically, these things indicate that while life can be challenging, they have a support system to navigate those challenges...
...Sometimes I think adults forget how difficult being a teenager is, and we lack empathy when hearing about the things they are going through. We minimize statements such as “my teacher called me out in class,” or “Johnny asked Bridget to the prom instead of me,” or “I got in trouble and I didn’t even do anything wrong!” As adults, we forget that these statements are meaningful and problematic for our teens and because we have survived those dramatic times, and we are likely to seem them as just that—big giant feelings. And, it’s easy to diminish those feelings when they seem so over the top. Not only are teens still going through puberty with hormonal changes, but their brains are still forming. They actually do not yet have the complete brain capacity to problem-solve for themselves as easily as we do."