Pray, fast, and give.
Pray, fast, and give.
All through Lent
As learn, love, and live,
As learn, love, and live,
We pray, fast, and give.
For years now, we've been singing versions of this made up ditty during the 40 days of Lent, often in conjunction with filling our Pray, Fast, and Give Jars.Randomly, this morning, my daughter began singing the song, perhaps in anticipation of the coming Lenten season or perhaps because we have been doing a lot of praying and fasting this past week while fighting fevers. Whatever the reason, after my my daughter sang the ditty, I asked her if she could explain how we make and use our Pray, Fast, and Give Jars, so I could share it here. She was happy to do so.
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My Daughter Explains Pray, Fast, and Give Jars
To make our Pray, Fast, and Give jars we used three small glass babyfood jars. First, we nailed a hole in the lid. Then, we took paper and wrote "pray" on the first...
..."fast" on the second, and "give" on the third.
We used purple, because it is Lent.
Then, we glued these papers onto the jars, and, near them, we put birdseed.
Every time we pray, fast, or give during Lent, we put a seed (or bean) into a jar, depending on whether we prayed, fasted, or gave. Then, on Easter, the jars "grow" lollipops , symbolizing the sweetness of Jesus' love, and we throw our seeds of sacrifice to the birdies.
We first heard about a similar thing on Holy Heroes, where they use one big jar for their family and use beans that turn into jelly beans. We changed from jelly beans to lollipops, because when we went gluten-free, casein-free, and dye-free, lollipops we could have were easier to find.
We changed to bird seed so we could feed the birds, too. And, we like to have three jars - one for praying, one for fasting, and one for giving - because we like to see how much each one gets. Usually praying has the most. We need to remember fast and give more - especially fasting!
I think other people with children can enjoy this tradition. It's fun and also supports praying, fasting, and giving, because you have something visual and concrete to do every day during Lent, and, then, can rejoice and enjoy lollipops on Easter!Through the Years with Our Pray, Fast, and Give Jars
As many traditions do, our family's tradition of using Lenten Jars has morphed through the years. We've adapted how many jars we use, where we place them, and what we put in them according to the needs and ideas of each given Lenten season. However, even as these practical details have changed from year to year, one thing has not: Pray, Fast, and Give Jars have become a staple Lenten tradition for us which reminds us daily to focus on the penitential practices.
To help us remember our penitential focus, we also posted the words "Pray", "Fast", and "Give" above our jars using purple paper letters that I'd cut out and let the children affix smiley stickers on. (That is where the last of my purple paper went that year before making the jars.). The smiley faces reminded us that Jesus smiles when we offer him our sacrifices.
Then, on Easter of that year, our beans disappeared and were replaced with sweet, long-lasting treats - lollipops - to symbolize the enduring gift of Jesus' love. Plus, the Lenten purple cloth below the beans turned to Easter white, the word "alleluia" re-appeared along with a wish for happy Easter, and an image of the risen Jesus came out, too.
That year, with a baby in the house, we kept the jar-making simple by just wrapping jars with purple paper that the children used foam stickers, markers, and crayons on. We placed these under a cross of paper the children painted purple which acted as a reminder to pray, fast, and give alms throughout the season. The children also added other bits of decor - mostly homemade - to the display as Lent unfolded, including crosses and sacrifice beads.
The kids could not wait to start using the jars and began praying, fasting, and looking for opportunities to give right away.
After cleaning those beans up - and finding stray bean after stray bean for days - there were still plenty to drop in our Pray, Fast, and Give Jars when we made sacrifices, so, of course, on Easter morning, the children were thrilled to discover that their jars had grown Easter sweetness and so had the hill where they had placed their nature-crafted crosses. Homemade butterflies, an image of the risen Jesus, unburied "Alleluia's", and liturgical year wheel completed the scene.
Lent 2015 found our Pray, Fast, and Give Jars moving to the kitchen table on a tray of seed (which we would not recommend to families with wee ones who might eat or get too overzealous with such a set up, nor to those with pets or pests.) We found that this placement prompted us to actually make sacrificial acts of prayer, fasting, and giving throughout our days better since the display was right where we cook, eat, and often do lessons or crafts.
Soon, a crucifix joined the scene, tucked into the small basket in which we placed strips of paper from completed sacrifices from our Lenten Chain.
Then, on Easter lollipops grew from our seeds of sacrificial love (which went out to feed our feathered friends), and they also appeared in the little basket nearby. Our buried-and-resurrected "Alleluias" became a backdrop for the scene, and some paper plate pencil topper Easter lilies, white candles, and opened paper Easter tombs that one of the kids had made completed our not-picture-perfect-yet-perfect-enough-for-us Easter vignette.
In 2016, our jars moved to the shelf between our living room and our dining room, however, I neglected to take any photos of them until the labels had come off, the seeds had been spread outside, and the children had gotten into the sweet reminders of Jesus' love. You can see here, though, that we decided to add a small statue of a risen Jesus near to our Easter morning display.
Lent 2017 was a rather crazy time for us since, among other things, we had recently lost Nana and Daddy was recovering from a surgery. Plus the children were preparing for and competing in their first Destination Imagination competition and, well, there was just a lot going on in our heads, hearts, and lives. So, to be honest, even though it was only a year ago, I cannot recall if our Pray, Fast, and Give Jars remained on the shelf or made their way back to the table. I do know, however, that during a somewhat stressful Lent, our tradition of using Pray, Fast, and Give Jars reminded us daily to offer up our hardships and to keep focusing on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.
By the time Easter came, we were all ready to savor the sweetness blooming from our jars, which were tucked at the top of our Easter morning table. We also rejoiced in the sweetness of knowing Jesus, indeed, rose again. Darkness never triumphs.
So it is that for almost a decade now, we have enjoyed our tradition of Pray, Fast, and Give Jars, and undoubtedly, will continue to do so for many years to come. Especially last year, they proved to us how a simple tool - three jars, some paper, some markers, birdseed, and lollipops - can work to focus us on the penitential practices of Lent and the joy of Easter. Our Pray, Fast, and Give Jars have certainly become an enduring and meaningful tradition for us. Perhaps your family might borrow the idea.
So it is that for almost a decade now, we have enjoyed our tradition of Pray, Fast, and Give Jars, and undoubtedly, will continue to do so for many years to come. Especially last year, they proved to us how a simple tool - three jars, some paper, some markers, birdseed, and lollipops - can work to focus us on the penitential practices of Lent and the joy of Easter. Our Pray, Fast, and Give Jars have certainly become an enduring and meaningful tradition for us. Perhaps your family might borrow the idea.
Whatever traditions you and yours practice, may your Lenten journey be a meaningful time or prayer, fasting, and almsgiving!
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