How is your Lent going? We have almost completed week two. Did you commit to giving up, taking up, and detaching? I started strong and then began to get busy and fizzled out a little bit. Not entirely, mind you, just step-by-step lazy and distracted. I am a continuous work in progress and restart machine.

The fantastic thing about God is that he loves U-turns and restarts. That is good news for you and me. I acknowledge that I can be lazy when it comes to discipline. How often will God take me seriously when I fail so frequently? As often as it takes when we intentionally turn and try again. Remember that Jesus had a human nature, too; he walked the earth as one like us for thirty-three years, so he has seen us in action, the good, bad, and the ugly, up close and personally. We must aim our efforts at growing in holiness. It is not how many times we fail but how many times we get up and try again.

I’m guilty of limiting God by what I think is “too many mess ups,” but then I remember that, thankfully, God is not me; his love and ability to forgive are infinite.

Recommit and begin anew.

Fr. Joseph, one of our parish priests, usually starts his homily with a passage from one of the Scriptures read in Mass as a passage to reflect on for the day. Tuesday’s passage was, “Do not…” (Matt 23:3). I kept waiting for the rest of the sentence. He decided those two simple words were sufficient for us. I appreciated his ability to recognize that we can easily forget after five words in a row. He says if we usually gossip, then do not. If we overindulge or let our pride and ego take control, do not.

Remember, do not.

Except as simple as it is, it is not. It requires an act of will, a consciousness of what we think, do, or say. We must be present at every moment, willing to catch ourselves and stop before stepping into the muck of sin. Attention to my thoughts and words is something I must constantly be alert to, or I end up covered in my own muck. Thank you, Lord for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I have received freedom and power, so the more I exercise my will, the stronger I get, and my virtue grows. Also, remember that timely help from our guardian angel and lots of grace can bridge the gap between my awkward attempts and the benefit of supernatural help.

So, “do not.”

I stepped into a department store today, which I rarely do to avoid unnecessary spending. I searched for something that could fit me and not look too preposterous, immodest, or pretentious for an upcoming event. I overheard a couple talking. As they peeked at the shoes on the clearance rack, the wife said to her husband, “Find something cute.” He chirps, “I don’t even know what that means.” She replies, “I need you to start upping your game more for me.” I smiled and could relate.

Starting today, let’s step up our holiness game. I have a plaque in our home that reads, “Don’t wish for it; work for it.” I do a lot of wishing. It has yet to get me very far. It’s the effort that produces the desired effect, that is why it is called work.

Let’s rededicate ourselves today, upping our game for the prize of a lifetime, and give God our very best efforts.