When Less is More while Meditating on Our Lord's Passion

Have you hit it yet? The Lenten Wall of, "I took on too much and now I just GIVE UP"? In our enthusiasm in the spiritual life we sometimes bite off more than we can chew. We love Jesus and want to grow nearer to him by leaps and bounds, rather than baby-steps. If this is happening to you, or if you haven't really made a Lenten "action plan" for fear of this "crash and burn" effect, try less is more.

Instead of taking on all fourteen Stations of the Cross each day, try meditating on just one. Taking five or ten minutes daily to compassionate Jesus at one Station is less daunting, and may actually be a more prayerful experience for many folks. Rather than concentrating on getting all the Stations completed, this method allows you to just be present to Our Lord, honoring each suffering along his way of the Cross.  If done daily in a sequential order, you will have spent a significant amount of time meditating on the Passion by the time Lent is done. 

Likewise, this method could be used with the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady, or the Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary. Ten minutes could be spent slowly reading out loud from the Passion narratives of the gospels. The options are many when we let go of the idea that we must complete an entire devotion or reading in one sitting, and allow ourselves the option of giving more of our hearts to Jesus, by taking on less of an obligation. 

If your Lent needs a little adjustment, rather than giving in to discouragement, try the "less is more" method and see if it isn't just what the doctor ordered. 

Lord, you are the leader of our Lenten journey. Please help us to listen to your guidance as we consider being more present to you through smaller windows into your Passion and death.