Lent: 40 Days of Water

When I was little and the only Baptist at my school, most of my friends did Lent, giving up candy or TV or meat in between Ash Wednesday and Easter.  They would moan dramatically or quietly remind me they couldn't eat the cookies I was sharing.  I thought they were so cool.  This was spiritual beliefs impacting their day to day lives!

But I never did Lent, because I was a good Baptist girl.  Then I grew up and realized, who cares what the denomination of my church does?  I do what I want!  So now I do Lent, when I remember.

This year I saw a friend's facebook status talking about this thing called 40 Days of Water.  It's organized by Blood:Water Mission, a non-profit group I've followed since Donald Miller did their cross-country bike ride.  They are dedicated to building wells and getting clean water to people in Africa, specifically Uganda.  Their punchline is this:  for $1, you can provide clean water to someone in Africa for a whole year.  Ridiculous.

So they've organized a Lenten drink fast.  No beverages but water for the 40 days leading up to Easter (Sundays are feast days, accounting for the extra six days).  No coffee, no soda, no tea, no bottled water.  Just tap water. 

The goal is two-fold.  One, like all good fasts, the lack of something should remind you of what you have.  In this case, a God who cares for the peoples of the world.  When I crave coffee or go through a caffeine-loss headache, I thank God for the blessings he has given me, I pray that He will bless the Blood:Water Mission endeavors, and I pray for the health and safety of those around the world who do not have access to clean water.

Two, I keep track of all the drinks I would be drinking normally.  They even have a website set up to help me remember.  At the end of the 40 days, I'll donate the money that would have normally gone to beverages and instead help build a well for others (this also ensures my motivations are correct, and not simply a way to save some money).

So far it's going well.  Two days in!  I'm excited to grow from this, to learn to trust God, to think more globally, and to do my small part in helping someone else. 

If anyone else is interested in joining (totally okay to join in late!), check out their website at http://40days.bloodwatermission.com/.