Every year at Lent, people make it a point to give up something that they enjoy. You have probably done so in the past. You dedicated yourself to spending 40 days without something in order to follow the tradition Jesus set when He spent 40 days and 40 nights fasting in the desert. If you are like most people, though, you did not give up anything truly important. You probably gave up something you enjoy that, realistically, you are overindulging in anyway. For a large number of people, this means giving up their favorite junk food item. Millions of people every year declare that they are going to go 40 days without eating chocolate, drinking soda, munching on potato chips or indulging in alcohol. Others give up either a bad habit, such as complaining and swearing, or use Lent to try and cut back on something they really should be spending less time on anyway, such as social media or taking selfies. 

Modern Lenten “sacrifices,” are not really sacrifices at all. They also completely miss the point of giving something up for Lent. The point is not to spend 40 days testing your willpower and wishing with all your might for Easter to arrive faster. The point of giving something up at Lent is to remove something from your life that is distracting you from God. The odds are that neither chocolate nor swearing is keeping you from spending time with God. With that in mind, here are six things to stop giving up for Lent.