Observing Lent as a Family

Lent is a beautiful season of repentance and self-denial, but it isn’t always easy for children to participate fully. Kids may not “give up” something or fast every day during this season, but there are several other ways to bring the whole family into your Lenten reflections and practices.

Select one day of each week to observe a sacrifice as a family. Explain the idea of a fast to your kids–choosing to deny ourselves as a way to remember our own weakness, and to reflect on Christ’s sacrifice for us. Maybe your family drinks water instead of juice or tea that day, or keeps the TV off, or goes without a favorite activity or toy. It doesn’t have to be every day, but a regular practice will make a way to talk about their experiences with fasting.

Plant something. Spring is a time for growing! Wheat grass, zinnias, sweet pea flowers, and radishes can all be grown quickly from seed. Read John 12:24 together as you plant these seeds in containers, watching them sprout and develop in the weeks leading up to Easter.

Watch butterflies emerge from their “tombs.” These kits are available online and come with a small jar of caterpillars plus food, a butterfly habitat, and easy-to-follow instructions about how to observe the transformation that occurs when a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. It’s a terrific picture of Jesus’s death and resurrection.

Make Easter Story Cookies. Meringue cookies are made with egg whites and become cooked and hollow in the center as they’re left in a warm oven overnight. They’re fun to make with kids, and this recipe includes Scripture passages that correspond with the instructions.

Join us at The Parish every Sunday at 9 or 10:30am as we walk through Lent together, leading to our celebration of Easter on April 16.