Lent is popular for what people give up and do during this season. We can use a reminder that this holy season is given to us so that we draw closer to Jesus.

Here’s the point: If you arrive at Easter no closer to Jesus than you were on Ash Wednesday, something went wrong.

Here are four basic things one should not do during Lent. By avoiding these things, we have a greater opportunity to walk closely with Jesus.

1. Take on more than you can handle in terms of penances or resolutions. Many of us get excited and very enthusiastic in the first week of Lent. We want to do everything. We want to be giants in our spiritual lives. Choose one meaningful, attainable goal and put all your energy toward it. For example, decide to go to Mass every day in Lent. Find all the parishes near you, check out their Mass times, and commit. Stick to being faithful to this one thing.
2. Skip Confession. The beauty of our faith is that God uses all our senses to encounter him. We need the Sacrament of Reconciliation to hear his love, to be assured of his mercy as the priest speaks the words of absolution. Make deliberate time to examine yourself and go to confession. It is the most fruitful thing we can do during the season.
3. Treat Lent like a weight-loss diet. Whether abstaining from meat or taking one full meal a day, Lent is about training our bodies to say no to something so that we can say yes to God, prayer, and serving the poor.
4. Do not bandwagon. Do not waste your time trying to be like everyone else. Ask the Holy Spirit to fill your heart with wisdom and illuminate those parts of your life that need the presence of Christ. This is honest, hard work, but with genuine, sincere prayer, it is possible.