Divine Mercy
@divinemercy_official·593K subscribers·8.2K videos
Lent Is Not About You
Posted
March 17, 2026
Views
11,521
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991
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March 17, 2026
11,521
991
26
8.83%
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1:05Now PlayingMany people misunderstand the purpose of Lent. They think it is about what they do for God, about their own efforts, their own sacrifices, their own discipline. But Lent is not solely about us. It is about Christ.
We are called to focus on our sins, yes. We are called to examine our lives, to recognize where we have fallen short, to identify areas that need conversion. That is an essential first step. Without the conviction of the Holy Spirit, we cannot see ourselves properly. We cannot acknowledge where we have sinned against God and against others. That truth is necessary for genuine conversion.
Let Him do it for you.
Consider St. Patrick. What was his 40 days in the desert? It was not something he chose. He was baptized, but he fell away from the faith. He was not living his Christian life. Then God used Irish pirates to bring him back, and draw him much deeper into his faith. For six years, Patrick endured captivity, living it as a school of prayer, fasting, and virtue. This was his penance. This was his Lent.
It was passive penance. Sometimes we think that active mortification is better than passive mortification. We choose our fasts, our prayers, our sacrifices. But passive mortification is harder. It is a penance we do not choose. It is suffering that comes to us, not something we select. That is much more difficult.
When we try to accept what we do not choose, when we receive it with faith, that is true surrender. That is what happened to St. Patrick. His experience was painful, but it transformed him. During those six years, his heart was converted from lukewarm Catholicism to fervent faith. He eventually became one of the greatest missionaries in history.
That is what Lent is about. It is God who transforms us. It is God who makes us into missionaries, into witnesses, into instruments of His grace. We focus on ourselves at the beginning of Lent. We see our misery. We see how far we have fallen. But then we must shift our gaze. We must look to Jesus.
He is the One who heals. He is the One who restores. He is the One who gives us new life.
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