First Week of Lent for Families

The three traditional pillars of Lent are prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. During this season, we focus on prayer, simplifying our lives, and giving. This week, I encourage you to focus on prayer. There is no "right" way to pray; prayer is simply a conversation with God. Explore different prayer practices to see what resonates with you. Here are a few suggestions to help you connect with God:

Easter Egg Prayers
Fill an Easter basket with open plastic eggs. Have family members write or draw their prayers on slips of paper and place them inside the eggs. Once the basket is full, sit together, open the eggs, and read the prayers. This can be done over a few days or weeks.

Pretzel Prayer
Pretzels have been linked to Lent and Easter for centuries. According to legend, an Italian monk created them to encourage prayer, shaping them to resemble crossed arms in prayer. Their simple ingredients - flour, salt and water- made them popular during Lent when people avoided rich foods.
Ways to incorporate pretzels in to Lent:
*Bake pretzels, folding them into the traditional shape while practicing the prayer                    posture.
*Say a prayer before eating a pretzel as a reminder.
*Learn about the pretzel's history in the church.

Jelly Bean Prayer
The Jelly Bean Prayer is a fun and colorful way to teach kids about the meaning of Easter and the significance of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. Here’s a simple version:
Red Jelly Bean – Jesus' blood, shed for us. Green Jelly Bean – New life in Christ. Yellow Jelly Bean – The promise of Heaven. Purple Jelly Bean – Jesus is the King of Kings. Orange Jelly Bean – Jesus' sacrifice for our sins. Black Jelly Bean – Our sins, which Jesus died for. White Jelly Bean – Jesus’ forgiveness and purity.
You can use these colors to explain the story of Easter to children, and as they eat the jelly beans, they’ll remember the key messages of the season.