“I’m co-hosting the Keeping LOVE in LENT Blog Link-Up 2013, with Raising (& Teaching) Little Saints and Arma Dei: Equipping Catholic Families. We’ll be sharing different ways, tips, stories and real-life experiences that will help us focus on Lenten sacrifices, prayer and good deeds, and how to carry them out with LOVE instead of a GRUMBLE. Please scroll down to the end of the post to see the list of link-up entries.”

It’s only been one week since Lent started, and already I feel like such a “failure” in keeping my Lenten resolutions and sticking to our plans. I’ve actually been extra cranky in my opinion, and more of a nag, instead of being the opposite, which I had resolved to be before Ash Wednesday.

Still, I know that God forgives me, and I know He will “raise me up on eagle’s wings” and help me through this challenging period I’m going through right now — particularly the “juggling” I’m trying to do (tasks for my regular job, additional writing projects, homeschooling, etc.) I know, too, that I’m not alone in this — there are so many other people, especially moms, that are doing the same thing as I am — “managing.” 😉

And so, for my Keeping Love in Lent post, I want to focus on encouraging you, in the hopes of encouraging myself as well… 🙂

Fix our eyes on Jesus

During my younger days in youth ministry (aaages ago… at least that’s how I feel!), we used to sing a song titled, “Fix My Eyes on Jesus Christ.” Here are a few lines:

The amazing Lord of all, the one and true Divine

Who came and died for me so I can be set free

Like the birds in the sky… ready to spread my wings

Never will I forget… To fix my eyes on Jesus

If we fix our eyes on Jesus, we can never go wrong. (Note to self: Remember this, especially during difficult days!)

This Lent, let’s keep our eyes, hearts and minds focused on the passion of Christ, His great love for us and His glorious resurrection.

Our family has been observing certain Lenten traditions since about two years ago, and they are helping us to fix our eyes on Jesus. You may click here and here to see what we’ve planned for this year. 🙂

This year, we’ll be praying the New Way of the Cross every Friday (sadly, we weren’t able to do this much in previous years). I got these beautiful mini-posters from St. Paul’s, a local bookstore. :)

Be united with others

It may be difficult to journey the seemingly long road to Easter but when we realize that we’re not alone — that there are millions, even billions — of other people walking the same path with us, it may make our load lighter.

This Lent, our family has incorporated Catholic Inspired‘s Lenten prayer chain into our Lenten traditions, and it has been an inspiring and heartwarming experience for me so far. We include the special prayer intention for that particular day in our nightly family prayers, which include praying one decade of the Rosary and our Jesus tree devotion.

I encourage you to do the same, even if we’re already one week into Lent. Praying for other people outside your family, even just general intentions, will help us grow in love for God and for others.

Humble yourself and ask for help

Lately, I’ve realized more and more the beauty of being part of one family in Christ, i.e. the Church. Through social media, I’ve been able to connect more with Catholics from all over the world, especially Catholic bloggers. It has been a huge blessing to know that I have brothers and sisters who have never met me nor my family, yet still lift me/us up in their prayers when I ask for help.

This Lent, and even beyond, when we feel too burdened by life’s little and big trials and challenges, let’s humble ourselves and seek the help of those around us. Asking for prayers and getting help in terms of the tasks we need to do will certainly push us to continue with our Lenten journey.

If you’re a Catholic blogger, you may want to join the Catholic Bloggers Network. It’s an awesome way to connect with like-minded people. 🙂

There are so many other things we can do to keep love in Lent. 🙂 I wrote a post on Philstar.com about how to have a joyful, meaningful Lent which I hope you’ll find useful, too. Also, there’s a list of links to wonderful blog posts below that may be of help to you. 🙂

Let’s continue to keep love in Lent, even when it’s difficult. 🙂 Pray for me, please, as I pray for you! 🙂 If you have any specific prayer concerns, please feel free to leave a comment. Here’s to a blessed Lent for us all!

Check out the other bloggers participating in the Keep LOVE in LENT Blog Link-Up 2013! We’ll be sharing different ways, tips, stories and real-life experiences that will help us focus on Lenten sacrifices, prayer and good deeds, and how to carry them out with LOVE instead of a GRUMBLE.

Discover new Catholic Blogs to follow!