Sermon, Imposition of Ashes, and Holy Communion at The University Church on Wednesday, Feb. 26th at 6:30 p.m. For more information, please visit our Facebook event page.
Download The University Church’s 2020 Lenten Calendar for an immersive experience of fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. Click the download link below.
Lenten Calendar 2020
This calendar is to help us be more mindful of the many blessings that we enjoy, often in face of personal difficulties. During Lent, we focus on the interconnected nature of fasting, prayer and almsgiving.
Wednesday, February 26th (Ash Wednesday): Fast from buying bits and pieces for your home. Pray for those who have no home. Almsgiving: If you have a home, deposit $1, if you are paying a mortgage, take back 50c, if you are renting, take back 75c.
Thursday, February 27th: Fast from complaining. Pray for those who don’t have any form of shelter. Almsgiving: If you have a roof over your head, deposit 75c. If the roof leaks, take back 50c.
Friday, February 28th: Fast from arguing. Pray for those whose homes are overcrowded. Almsgiving: Deposit 25c for each person living in your home and 10c for each pet. If you have more occupants than rooms, take it all back.
Saturday, February 29th: Fast from turning up the central heating. Pray for those whose homes are cold. Almsgiving: Deposit 10c for each degree above 60 degrees in your house. Take back 10c for each degree below 60 degrees.
Sunday, March 1st: Worship the Lord, and give thanks.
Monday, March 2nd: Fast from wasting water. Pray for those who have no access to clean water. Almsgiving: Deposit 25c for each faucet in your home. Take back 10c for each faucet that leaks.
Tuesday, March 3rd: Fast from using hot water. Pray for those who have no hot water. Almsgiving: If you took a hot shower today, deposit $1. If you took a cold shower, take back 50c.
Wednesday, March 4th: Fast from wasting food. Pray for those who have no food today. Almsgiving: Deposit 25c if you have a working refrigerator, 75c for an extra in the garage or basement. Take back 50c if your refrigerator is broken.
Thursday, March 5th: Fast from cooked food. Pray for those who have no means of cooking food. Almsgiving: If you have a working stove, deposit 30c, for a microwave, 25c.Take back 20c if either is broken.
Friday, March 6th: Fast from running your washing machine when it is half empty. Pray for those who have no means to clean their clothes. Almsgiving: Deposit 60c if you have a washer and 40c if you have a dryer. Take back 25c if either is broken.
Saturday, March 7th: Fast from unnecessary driving. Pray for those who cannot easily get from A to B. Almsgiving: If you have a car, deposit 50c, motorcycle, 30c, bicycle, 10c. If broken, take it all back.
Sunday, March 8th: Worship the Lord and give thanks.
Monday, March 9th: Fast from watching TV. Pray for those who are isolated from the world. Almsgiving: If you have cable, satellite, or streaming TV, deposit $1. If your TV has rabbit ears, take back 50c.
Tuesday, March 10th: Fast from leaving electronic devices plugged in all the time. Pray for those who have no electricity in their homes. Almsgiving: Deposit 10c for every electrical outlet in your home. Take back 5c for each outlet that doesn’t work.
Wednesday, March 11th: Fast from using your cell phone all day. Pray for those who cannot communicate across distance. Almsgiving: Deposit 50c for each time you failed to fast and used your cell phone today.
Thursday, March 12th: Fast from any use of the internet today. Pray for those who have no access to the collected information available on the internet. Almsgiving: If you have internet in your home, deposit $1. If you successfully fasted all day, take 50c back.
Friday, March 13th: Fast from complaining (again). Pray for those who have no access to a bathroom. Almsgiving: Deposit 50c for the first bathroom in your home and 75c for each additional half or full bathroom. If your bathroom facilities don’t work properly, take 50c back.
Saturday, March 14th: Fast from staying inside all day. Pray for those with no easy access to nature. Almsgiving: Deposit 50c if you have a back yard, $1 if you have a pool or pond. If you have no back yard, deposit nothing.
Sunday, March 15th: Worship the Lord and give thanks.
Monday, March 16th: Fast from fast food. Pray for those who live in food deserts. Almsgiving: For every vegetable in your refrigerator, deposit 50c. For every left-over bag of French fries, take back 50c.
Tuesday, March 17th: Fast from comparing your health to that of others. Pray for the sick. Almsgiving: Deposit 50c for each time a doctor or nurse helped you get healthy in 2019. Take back 25c for each time you struggled to pay your medical bills.
Wednesday, March 18th: Fast from paying for that gym membership that you never use. Pray for those who need help learning to exercise. Almsgiving: Deposit 50c for each visit to the gym. Deposit $1 for each day on which you said you would visit the gym but didn’t do it. If you don’t have a gym membership, deposit nothing.
Thursday, March 19th: Fast from buying new clothes. Pray for those who have no warm clothes to wear. Almsgiving: Deposit $1 for each winter coat in your closet and 50c for each pair of boots. If there are no coats or boots in your closet, deposit nothing.
Friday, March 20th: Fast from driving when you could have walked. Pray for those for whom transportation is a daily burden. Almsgiving: If you have a car, deposit $1, 75c for each additional car, 25c for tractors or other mobile farm equipment. If your car didn’t start today, take back 50c.
Saturday, March 21st: Fast from lusting over your neighbor’s new car. Pray for those who have bought cars that they can’t really afford and are now in financial trouble. Almsgiving: If your car is paid off, deposit $1, deposit 50c if still paying or leasing your vehicle. If you have no car, deposit nothing.
Sunday, March 22nd: Worship the Lord and give thanks.
Monday March 23rd: Fast from going to the grocery store without a shopping list and buying things you don’t need. Pray for those whose prayer today is that they can afford to buy groceries to feed their children. Almsgiving: If you drove to the grocery store within the last ten days, deposit $1. If you could afford groceries when you got there, deposit another dollar. If you are praying that you can afford groceries this week, deposit nothing.
Tuesday, March 24th: Fast from breakfast today if your health allows. Pray for those who face food insecurity and will have no breakfast today. Almsgiving: Deposit 10c if you had breakfast yesterday, 25c if you’ve had breakfast every day over the last week. If you just had coffee for breakfast, deposit 5c. If you had no breakfast at all, deposit nothing.
Wednesday, March 25th: Fast from lunch today if your health allows. Pray for those who face food insecurity and will have no lunch today. Almsgiving: Deposit 10c if you had lunch yesterday, 25c if you’ve had lunch every day over the last week. If you just had leftovers for lunch, deposit 5c. If you had no lunch at all, deposit nothing.
Thursday, March 26th: Fast from dinner today if your health allows. Pray for those who face food insecurity and will have no dinner today. Almsgiving: Deposit 50c if you had dinner yesterday, $1 if you’ve had dinner every day over the last week. If you just had leftovers for dinner, deposit 5c. If you had no dinner at all, deposit nothing.
Friday, March 27th: Fast from over-indulgence. Pray for those who live with the reality of food insecurity every day. Almsgiving: If you ate three meals today, deposit $1, 75c for two, and 50c for one. If you had nothing to eat today, deposit nothing.
Saturday, March 28th: Fast from eating fast food and using your busy schedule as an excuse. Pray for those who live in food deserts where fast food is the only available option. Almsgiving: If your diet over the last three days included fresh fruits and vegetables, deposit $1. If you have had fresh fruits or vegetables within the last week, deposit 50c. If you can’t remember the last time you ate a piece of fruit, deposit nothing.
Sunday, March 29th: Worship the Lord and give thanks.
Monday, March 30th: Fast from wasting food by cooking too much and then throwing it away. Pray for those who have to find their food in the garbage cans of others. Almsgiving: If over the last week you disposed of leftover food in the trash, deposit $1. If not, deposit nothing.
Tuesday, March 31st: Fast from being isolated from others. Pray for past friends and family members from whom you are estranged. Almsgiving: For every smile or kind word you exchanged today, deposit 10c. For each missed opportunity to exchange a smile or kind word, deposit 50c.
Wednesday, April 1st: Fast from missing opportunities to help others because you say you are always too busy. Pray for opportunities to use your gifts for building up the Kingdom of God. Almsgiving: For each time you served others this month, deposit $1. For each opportunity that you missed, deposit $2.
Thursday, April 2nd: Fast from worshiping your job, if you have one. Pray for balance in your life. Almsgiving: For everyone in your household who has a job deposit 50c, deposit 25c for a part time job. Take back 10c if your job is more a burden than a blessing.
Friday, April 3rd: Fast from ignoring people. Pray that you will see the face of Christ in those whom you encounter. Almsgiving: Deposit 50c for each time you greet another, deposit $1 for each time you fail to greet another. Take back 25c for each time someone ignores you today.
Saturday, April 4th: Fast from watching TV, Netflix, etc. today. Pray for those who are constantly distracted from seeing the problems of the world. Almsgiving: For each book in your home, deposit 10c. Take back 5c for each one you haven’t read yet.
Sunday, April 5th (Palm Sunday): Worship the Lord and give thanks.
Holy Week – Monday, April 6th: Fast from thinking of yourself as the center of the universe. Pray that you can see that every person you encounter is fully human. Almsgiving: Each time you catch yourself thinking that another is unworthy, deposit 50c. Each time you pause to value another, take back 25c.
Holy Week – Tuesday, April 7th: Fast from not reading the Bible. Pray as you read the story of Jesus in the Gospels. Almsgiving: Deposit 50c for each day on which you read the Bible this week. Deposit $1 for each day you didn’t read the Bible.
Holy Week – Wednesday, April 8th: Fast from feeling that you can’t make a difference. Pray for the strength to make a difference in your community. Almsgiving: Give no money but commit some of your time to working for the communal good.
Holy Week – Thursday, April 9th (Maundy Thursday): How is Jesus calling you to serve? How will you respond? Will you attend our Maundy Thursday service today?
Holy Week – Friday, April 10th (Good Friday): Jesus died on the cross. What are you willing to sacrifice to give others a better life? Will you attend our Good Friday service today?
Holy Week – Saturday, April 11th: Use this day as a time of prayer and preparation for Easter Sunday.
Holy Week – Sunday, April 12th (Easter Sunday): Happy Easter! The Lord is risen, he is risen indeed! Alleluia! See you at our Easter Sunday services today.
[Thanks to Karen Wasson and Family Promise of Arizona and to Arnold Betz for the inspiration that led to this calendar]