Lent

I'm doing two things for lent, and "giving up" something isn't directly involved. But it will happen indirectly. I understand the purpose behind the "giving up" in order to represent the suffering of Christ for 40 days in the desert. But I've been thinking of things I could give up, and most of them are things that I am not heavily reliant on anyway (television, internet, junk food, reading). I have what you might call "built in moderation" because I am busy in many ways. But I have decided that in the same spirit, I'm going to adopt two things that will be a struggle for me, but that will ultimately be a joy.
1) Drink water. I don't like it. It tastes like nothing. I drink it when I go to the gym, or if it's really hot outside, but I mostly stick with juice or tea or milk. But I know that water is good for me, and I notice immediately when I start drinking a good 64 ounces a day that I have prettier skin, more energy, and I feel healthier. So I've got my pink nalgene all filled with agua, and it's off we go.

2) Live on a Dave Ramsey approved budget. I have had a "budget" in the past, but mostly it involved not spending too much money and having plenty left over at the end of the month. Dave advises a zero-balance budget, because "mystery unused money" lying in a checking account gets spent on junk. So I've balanced my budget precisely to the penny, I've got my envelopes all ready.

Balancing my budget out was actually surprising. I sat down with my calculator, bank statements, and Monthly Cash-Flow plan(from daveramsey.com) and figured out where I was spending too much and where I wasn't spending enough (can you say "giving" and "savings"?). I was spending very little on food, which I was sure would be the culprit. I actually increased my food budget significantly and tithed fully as well as saved 10% of my income, while paying off my school loans a little extra each month, and still came up with extra cash. That goes in the "blow money" which sounds like drug money, but really just means it's money that's there for my "Just in Case" moments. ;)

Anyway, I think both things will be like "giving up" things, but really adopting things that I know God is calling me to. I'll try to keep everyone updated. :)