Lent...then what?

\\"Pray without ceasing\\" -- Jesus

You are of course right about trying to keep what we gain from Lent. But of course we have to be careful. I am in the Bulgarian church. I don\'t know much about the Coptic church, or even how the OCA church does things...but I\'m sure that the Bulgarians do have differences with both. I think basically what I was trying to say is, keep talking with your priest. Many people have fallen because they have taken on too much, without the guide of spiritual father to guide them. Some people with the guide of a spiritual father can continue on certain spiritual feats outside of Lent, others are advised not to do so. There are good reasons for this, of course. Sometimes different people are told to fast differently or do different prayers...each helpful to the each person. But all are advised by a spiritual father. I even remember reading about Elder Cleopa who told a very exited young monk, \\"Do not do 3,000 prostrations! Do 100 for now, and say morning and evening prayers, and the prayers to the mother of God. Learn to love your brother. And do not do anymore!\\" He knew what the young monk really needed to begin, and stay on the right path. I think to keep the spiritual balance the spritual father is the way to go. Because most times (in every aspect of life) we can be lazy or go overboard. God bless!

In one of the Holy Week services in the Western Rite Vicarate of the AOA, there is what appears condemnations: Jesus is speaking to a Christian recounting what has been done spiritually for him. Then the question is put to the Christian as to why in light of what has been provided, why a victorious life is not being led. The most accusatory and condemning statement is then made: \\"What have I done wrong, testify against me.\\" According to what one\'s station is in life, aged, infirm, young, etc., Orthodoxy grants economy in fasting, lest the practitioner is overwhelmed,. And thus the enemy of souls bolsters his accusations and attacks. In other words; under wise council, we do what we\'re able to accomplish faithfully. Put in other words it reads thusly: We do what God speaks to us about; be it television, food, reading, internet, etc., etc., etc... The spiritual ideal is that there be no let down, drop off, or reneging of any part of our ascetic struggles. But God knows our hearts, for it is He who designed, made, and redeemed each of us. Quite often then in practice; there is always some point where we\'re specifically convicted, to continue fighting the good fight of faith. The asceticism need not be some grand endeavor, but like the majority of our life, one small step at a time. We then are fortified in faith by what God has himself done in us, so that on the great day of Pascha, having confessed our sins, we may confidently receive the Lord of All. The short version of all that is this: After Great Lent, we keep on shedding the dis-obedience/sin, of the world, flesh, and the devil!!!

This is my third Lent. I was thinking that I would be sensing some routine or repetitive \\"going through the motions\\" by now, but I\'m not getting any of those vibes at all. If anything, Lent is renewal - and as such, it will always have a bit of \\"spring cleaning\\" feel to it. Lent is an annual shaking of my life\'s snowglobe - it puts things in motion that need to be in motion - it allows a renewed perspective on things that I have always known to be there, but over time had gotten buried by sediment.