Lent 2024: February 14 – March 30

What is Lent and Why Should I Care?

Lent is a 40-day season of prayer, fasting, and giving that some Christians observe in preparation for Resurrection Day. It is actually spread over almost seven weeks, as it is only observed Monday – Saturday of each week. Sundays are reserved as a celebration of Christ’s Resurrection.

Known as a time of increased closeness to God, Christians around the world will observe a period of fasting, repentance, moderation, self-denial, and spiritual discipline. The purpose of the Lenten season is to set aside time for reflection on Jesus Christ — to consider His suffering, His sacrifice, His life and His death, burial, and resurrection.

Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday is the start of the season of Lent (six and half weeks before Easter each year). The tradition of marking one’s forehead with ashes is rooted in the ancient Hebrew custom of clothing oneself in sackcloth and dusting oneself with ashes.

This year, Ash Wednesday falls on Feb. 14. Lent ends on Saturday, March 30, with the celebration of Christ’s Resurrection on Sunday, March 31.

Why is Lent important?

Lent is a time of turning of one’s heart towards God, recognizing the brokenness in ourselves and in the world and the need for salvation.

This is a perfect opportunity to increase our spiritual discipline. For some, it could mean additional prayer, meditation, or Bible reading. For others, it might mean fasting and deeper repentance. Still others may commit to regular acts of service or increased charitable giving.

You don’t have to be Catholic to celebrate Lent! It is the perfect time to take just 40 days and commit to growing closer to Christ.  Even Jesus fasted for 40 days, so it is perfectly biblical to observe a 40-day period of greater intimacy with our Lord and Savior.

Three 40-day plans to help you grow closer to God

I have created three separate 40-day reading plans to help you make the most of this Lenten season. They are meant to be printed and checked off each day, as a sort of visual habit tracker. All 3 reading plans can be bought together in a bundle for only $5!

The Bible Highlights plan is available now as a FREE PDF printable download.  

Did you know if you spend only 15 minutes a day for forty days, that you could read through all four Gospels and reflect on the life of Jesus?

Or 15 minutes spent with your family each day can cover the Highlights of the whole Bible. Imagine walking through the entire Bible narrative, from beginning to end, with your kids over the next several weeks!

If you are willing to commit 45 minutes a day, you could read the entire Bible in the next forty days!

Don’t panic if reading isn’t your learning style. Can you read passages together with friends or family? Maybe you’re an audio learner?  Great – spend time listening to the Bible each day on your favorite app or YouTube.

I recently completed the entire Bible in forty days and I was so blessed by it! I’ll admit I don’t even read through my entire Bible every year and am in a very busy season of life. I wanted to take on this challenge and see how manageable it was. Though I am not usually an audio learner, I did a lot of audio – while driving in the car with my kids (they loved it and learned so much!). I would pop in my earbuds and listen while I cooked dinner or walked my dogs. And here is my favorite hack: gradually increase the playback speed until you are comfortable hearing the Word read at 1.75x speed! You can fly through books of the Bible and hide the Scriptures in your heart in less time than you would have imagined. 

Even if you don’t get through one of these plans, I encourage you to read or listen to one piece of Scripture every day for the next forty days. You will be amazed at what Jesus reveals to you and how He changes you through the washing of His word.

May God bless you abundantly,

Cherie