I was speaking to someone recently about partaking in this journey of using the time of Lent to purify the body.  I invited her to use Lent as a time to practice eating the healthiest foods for our body and treating it with the utmost respect and care.  She thought that was great, but didn’t think that she could give up chocolate. 

 

It turned out that she has a dog, So I asked her if she would feed chocolate to her dog. 

“No, it’s not healthy for the dog”, was her response.  I pointed out that the motivation that is behind not feeding the dog chocolate, is that she loves her dog so much.  It is her love that dictates the caring behavior towards her animal.  It is because of her love for her animal that she treats it well.  I asked her if she could practice such a love for her own body.  It is a question that I invite you to ask yourself.  Can you treat your body with love and healthy care for 40 days? Can you treat yourself as well as you do your pets?

 

Lent does not have to be a time of disciplined suffering.  Rather it can be a time ruthlessly disciplined love.

 

Another man mentioned that there was a party, and that he wished to have that day off to enjoy the food and alcohol at the party.  Of course this is fine, we all have free will and only we can choose what is right for ourselves.  But upon further inquiry, I asked him how he would feel if he were to continue the fasting at the party.  What if he didn’t eat the desserts and alcohol.  He concluded that it would be an unpleasant experience, and that he would not enjoy it.  He had a sense that he would be deprived. 

 

And here is the subtle workings of the mind.  The mind makes the agreement that “I have to have something, and when I have it I will enjoy it.”  THEN assumes the corollary that, IF I don’t have it, I will be unhappy.”  And the mind has agreed to be unhappy when we are without.      Not that we have to be, just that we have agreed to it. THEN, the mind concludes that in order to get out of my unhappiness I must have the food, AS IF, the food is the antidote to the emotional suffering story,  “Oh no, I’m not going to get what I want”  But it is believing the story that is the real cause of the emotional dis-ease.

 

And so we eat to avoid our emotional reaction to the story we don't even know we have agreed to.  

 

But the food doesn’t dissolve the emotional suffering of the story.  The story is the cause of our discomfort, not the “missing food.” The food only distracts our attention from realizing the story at play.  And so we miss the opportunity to find the agreement and purify our mind of its lie. 

 

I invite you to take the opportunity to treat your body with love.  Treating it to the healthiest foods is putting your Love in action.  And in the process you will have opportunities to free your mind from so many lies that cause us suffering.  What you do with this opportunity is for you and your mind to decide

 

 

______________________ THE CLEANSE ____________________

 

During the time of Lent we will eat the most nourishing and healthy foods for our body Foods should be in their original forms.  (as little processing as possible. )  We will stick to a regiment of foods and refrain from others.  This will strengthen our Will, and help us to win over the temptations of self abuse and suffering in our lives. 

 

 

Breakfast: 

            Fruits, grains, oats, granola etc

A Limited amount of dairy is acceptable if desired but not preferred.    Suggest using soy milk and other substitutes.

 

Lunch

            Whole grains, legumes, and steamed or grilled vegetables

 

Dinner:  Fruit or as above for lunch

Use natural oil if necessary for cooking

 

Following are acceptable:

Whole grains as close to original form as palatable and possible ( rise millet, oats, barley etc.) 

Legumes/ beans ( black, mung, soy/tofu)

Raw sunflower seeds

Fresh vegetables and fruit

Tofu

Yogurt ( no sugar ) 

Limited dairy

Honey

Olive oil ( or natural oil ) with fresh lemon juice as salad dressing

   

Suggested preference for organic foods if possible

        

Foods to Refrain from 

 

Nuts such as peanuts, walnuts, and cashews

Refined sugar

Caffeine ( coffee, tea, coke, soda )

No frying of vegetables

No oil or butter except natural used sparingly for cooking. 

Processed foods

Consider breads and pasta to be processed.

Meat

 

Yes we notice that there is no meat on here.  Your belief system may be reacting to this.  Good, this way those hidden beliefs get exposed.  There are many vegetarians that go for years without eating meat.  This cleansing eating pattern is designed to provide your body with a lot of energy, be easy for digestion, and cleanse it of toxins.    If you want to make modifications to the above suggestions, you are welcome to do so.  You are fully welcome to create your own vigil of love for your body as you choose. 

 

 

________________________  Part of a larger Plan  _____________________________

 

 Will Power, Effectiveness, and Desire, these are the ingredients for change in our lives.  Desire gives us the impetus for action.  Will power allows us to make movement and take action over the resistance to change that we encounter. And Effectiveness ensures that our efforts of strategy are taking us in the direction that we want to go. 

If we were to make a metaphor we could make it about driving a car.  The engine and drive train is about Will Power.  The Desire we have, fuels our vehicle.  And our steering system is our Effectiveness of our strategy.   Without the engine or gas we don’t’ go anywhere.  Either because we don’t have the Will Power, or we do not have the Desire to go.  But with those two, and no Effective steering system, we might end up in the wrong direction.   

If we are to make changes our lives, it will require that we have the power to do it.  Whenever we want to change the course of our financial state, our relationships, or our emotional reactions, it requires Will Power.  We can call Will Power, the power required to change the course of our lives.  We may want to exercise more or eat better, but when we find ourselves slipping back to the old habits, we often have all the awareness to notice, and the desire, but not the will power to change the actions.

 

The Easter Vigil is very much about recovering Will Power and strength so that we have the Power to change our Lives

 

Much Love and Respect

 

Gary