sacrifice and commitment

As I'm sure you all are well aware, today marks the beginning of the Lenten season. Although Lent is most commonly observed by Catholics, it is nonetheless a great way for any Christian to try to make a sacrifice or pledge to prepare for the Easter miracle. The idea is to give up something or make a concerted effort to accomplish something that is hard for you. And hopefully, whatever you do (or don't do) will teach you something.

The first thing I'm giving up this year is fried food. I considered giving up fast food all together, as I have done before, but that's just not realistic for me. Quite frankly, my work travel, more often than not, takes me to small towns where I literally have no meal options other than fast food (aside from starving of course). Because French fries are my go-to comfort food when I've had a long day, this will definitely be a sacrifice for me. And hopefully, this sacrifice will help me make healthier food choices when on the road for work and discover new ways to unwind and destress.

Secondly, I have decided to give up wasteful spending on unnecessary beauty products. This is my weakness, and when I looked back through a few months of spending, I was amazed at how much money I throw away on beauty items. I think very little about grabbing a $4 tube of lip gloss or throwing a $7 bottle of nail polish into my shopping cart. But when you do this EVERY time you set foot in Target or Ulta or Walmart or CVS or where-ever, it starts to add up. My bathroom is overflowing with eyeshadows and nail polishes and hair products that I've only used once. Of course, I do have some go-to products that I use daily (or almost every day):

Baby Lips- my faves are Quench and Peach Kiss

Moroccan Oil - perfect for taming frizzy hair

Salon Grafix Dry Shampoo

Ahava daily facial moisturizer

My favorite daily lotion. Non-greasy and great scent!

But starting today- no more throwing money away on unnecessary products for my hair, face, skin, nails, etc. I have more than enough make-up, nail polish, hair products, and lotion to get me through Lent without having to purchase anything. The only exception to the rule will be if I run out of foundation. I've worn Bare Minerals for several years now and this is the one product where I never step outside of the box.




Hopefully, in a small way, this sacrifice will help remove my focus from some of the material things in life that we are all distracted by.



Finally, I am also making a pledge to complete a bible study. I just purchased this study by Beth Moore. Has anyone done it before? I've read great things and am so excited!



I also plan to accompany the study with a daily devotional from here:




I'm not Catholic, but my hope is that the combination of these sacrifices and this commitment during the Lenten season will serve as an opportunity for me to come closer to God.

Do any of you have plans to give up something for Lent?