Get out of a rut

We all occasionally find ourselves in a rut. Fortunately, knowing we're stuck in a rut is the first step in getting unstuck.

Ruts, of course, are habits that we want to change so we can become better, thus enriching our lives and making them more interesting.

Lent
• Lent-related articles  • 2003 Lenten Wish List (3/7 issue)  • Lenten rules (2/28 issue)

Among the ruts we can find ourselves in are spiritual ones.

So how to get of them? LuAnn McLane, a freelance writer and mother of four from Erlanger, Ky., looks at 11 ways to break out of religious ruts in the March 2003 issue of St. Anthony Messenger, a splendid magazine published by the Franciscan Friars of St. John the Baptist Province in Cincinnati.

Here are the 11 simple suggestions McLane came up with "to change some good habits and beat boredom, thus finding a fresh approach to keeping our faith alive and kicking":

• Attend a different Mass on Sunday. She suggests going to a folk, choral or children's Mass or hearing the preaching from a different priest or deacon as ways to have a fresh experience.

• Find a new spot to sit in church as a way to gain a different perspective and to meet different people since most of us sit in the same spot every week.

• Volunteer for something new, such as a different job for the parish picnic, a new ministry or different parish committee or run for the parish council.

• Say no firmly, but politely to avoid over-volunteering and to give others a chance to serve the community.

• Listen and think while praying to be aware of what God has to say.

• Read, reflect and share with others, especially from spiritual books and Catholic magazine and newspaper articles.

• Seek out new saints beyond the ones you know so well. She suggests www.AmericanCatholic.org; The Compass website, www.thecompassnews.org, has biographies of more than 100 saints.

• Sing a new song by joining in at Sunday Mass, by listening to a Christian radio station or buying Christian recordings.

• Shake up the holidays by concentrating on the religious meaning of Christmas and Easter and by making ample time for family.

• Venture out of your comfort zone by doing something you're not accustomed to, such as lectoring, teaching religious education to teens or giving a faith witness on a weekend retreat.

• Sport a new attitude by changing the manner in which you do the things you normally do.

Lent is a season of change and reform. Getting out of ruts is a great way to bring about change.