Creative Spiritual Practices for Your Family this Lent

Lent, coming from the Latin root, Lux, means spring and refers to the 40-day season between Ash Wednesday and Easter in the Christian calendar. Lent is traditionally a time of fasting, prayer and “giving something up,” such as chocolate or caffeine. But for many today, Lent has also become an opportunity to “take something on” and try a new spiritual practice. Lent offers the opportunity for a spiritual “check-in;” a time of reflecting on our life with God and seeking to go deeper in our spiritual life.

Practices such as prayer and meditation enhance the spiritual journey during Lent. One creative new form of praying throughout this year’s Lent is coloring. Coloring can be a prayerful and meditative practice that engages the creative side of our brains while also calming us and drawing us deeper into the stories of God’s resurrection work in the world.

New adult coloring books for Lent, such as Coloring Lent: An Adult Coloring Book for the Journey to Resurrection, offer evocative images and meditations to color and ponder for every day during Lent.

Lent is also the perfect time for parents to introduce spiritual practices into their family life. Parents can invite their children (and themselves) to take on a daily practice, such as saying a gratitude prayer before dinner, giving up sweets, lighting a candle as prayer, or picking up trash around the neighborhood.

A wonderful new resource brimming with easy, do-it-yourself ideas to transform your family’s everyday moments into sacred ones is Faithful Families: Creating Sacred Moments at Home. Filled with more than 50 practices to share with your family all year long, this book is ideal for both the new seeker or lifelong follower.