When I was a small boy being brought up by my parents or guardians, I hated the Lenten season. Apart from having to give up on some of my favorite food stuff, I loathed the long, 'special' Lenten prayers. And there was no way out. I had to actively participate in them whether I detested them or not. It happened year after year after year.

Now it seems that the steadfast and strict discipline with which I was brought up is paying rich dividend. It has, unconsciously yet conspicuously, enriched and transformed me into a better and more spiritual person. When I started living away from my family for my higher studies, daily prayers that was engrained in me as a deep rooted habit by then, remained with me, and provided me with much needed refuge and strength. It was then (as I recited those prayers alone and aloud) that I really started to contemplate and brood over the meaning of those profound, breath-taking Lenten prayers, which, until then, I used to recite mechanically.

Believe it or not, now I indeed look forward to the Lenten season, especially to recite those really wonderful prayers taken from the Holy Scriptures as well as written by our Church fathers truly inspired by the Holy Spirit!

I hope my experience will be an inspiration for all parents who find their children troublesome and disinclined to pray. In spite of the initial abomination that they may have towards prayer, it is important to persist with a regular prayer life. Slowly but surely, it will enrich them and become an integral part of their lives.

I also beseech all those who have not yet started the habit of praying the special Lenten prayers to take up their prayer books, and discover the priceless treasure that is in them. You will be amazed by its depth, and rest assured, it will have a profound impact upon your spirituality!

See Also:

Lent Resources - Home

Why Should We Observe the Lent and Fasting?
We should keenly look forward to the Lent- because the purpose of Prayer & Fasting is to defeat the Satan.

On Prayer
It is customary since ancient times for the Patriarch of Antioch to issue a lengthy encyclical for the Great Lent exhorting the faithful to observe the lent in its true spirit. Here is one on prayer.

The Great Lent- An Opportunity for Us to Cleanse Our Mind, Body and Soul

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