FAQ

1. Anything that will help someone to feel better about something.
2. Any prayer for someone other than yourself. This is perhaps the most powerful, and takes the least time and effort.
3. We’re creating lists of suggestions for people, and will post them on the web site.
4. The list is endless…

No.  In fact, they may not even know you did it (however, God knows it…). For example, you may complete your daily requirements by saying prayers for people.

From the youngest age that is aware of Lent, and up - with no upper age limit.  Young children can look for ways to help their parents, be nice to their siblings, etc.  School children can look for ways to help other students and teachers, be nice to each other, talk to the shy students, stick up for others, etc.

1. We hear suggestions about how to live our lives - such as “Live like Jesus”, “What Would Jesus Do”, “Don’t just attend Church – BE the Church”…etc. This is a great opportunity for people to experience that type of mindset in their lives.
2. The process brings more positive into the lives of both those on the receiving end and those performing the acts. Most people could use more positive in their lives these days…
3. In one Parish’s weekly bulletin, the Pastor ends his writings with the request “Let us pray for one another”. The Lenten Positive Acts Challenge complements that request, and helps put it into action.
4. Another Parish ends their masses with the words "Go in peace...glorifying the Lord by your life".  This will help you to do that.

Create a worldwide phenomenon of positive acts. Imagine the positive impact it will have.

1. People are in a different mindset during Lent. They’re already thinking about Jesus – his life and death, what he did for us, and what we can do for him. It’s the perfect time to get them involved.
2. It has set start and end dates (worldwide), so people will be able to see the finish line – and it will keep them going. Everyone will be on the same schedule.

No.  However, the emails will provide support, encouragement, and inspiration during the challenge...which may increase your chances of completing it.  You can always unsubscribe from the mails if you find they're not helpful to you.

This is one of our favorite questions. 🙂  You can participate in the “Advanced Challenge”. It begins with 1 positive act on Ash Wednesday, and increases the daily amount by 1 per day…until you reach 47 on Easter Sunday.

The Challenge slowly builds up to the 47. We start with only 1 on Ash Wednesday. Anyone can perform 1 positive act. Increasing the number by only 1 each day ensures that the next day will require only a little more effort. As people get further along, they’ll start to see that’s it’s not as difficult as they thought it would be to perform the acts. They’ll also start noticing more opportunities to perform positive acts in their daily lives – opportunities that they hadn’t noticed before (because they’re now in a different mindset). In fact, some people may find themselves performing more than the number they’re supposed to for a given day…

Some people may not be able to get up to 47 – that’s fine. The important thing is that they’re trying – which puts them into a new mindset, where they’re looking for opportunities to perform positive acts.

A prayer counts as a positive act. Anyone can say a prayer…anywhere…at any time. The homeless person you passed on the sidewalk…say a prayer for them. The woman walking with a limp…say a prayer for her. The paralyzed boy in the wheelchair…say a prayer for him. And his family.

1. To help you out, we’re creating a page on our site dedicated to prayers. Everyone could use some prayers…some more than others. This page will contain prayer requests from people all over the world. Please take a few minutes to read some of them, and say a few prayers for them. In fact, you may even decide to post a message yourself – asking others to say a prayer for you.
2. Even if you don’t leave your house during the day, you can still keep up with your daily quota of Lenten Positive Acts – by visiting the “prayer” page, and saying prayers for some of the people who posted their requests. You may even find yourself going beyond the number of positive acts you’re aiming to perform that day.

You can always participate in the regular Challenge, as opposed to the advanced Challenge. Instead of increasing the number of positive acts you perform by 1 per day, you increase the daily number by 1 per week.

Consider the following:

• Present it to parishioners at Masses – it’s written in a format that can be read (or put into their own words) by the Priests or Deacons. It takes only 5 minutes to read out loud. (They could start with “Lent begins in X days…do you know what you’re doing yet?”) It’s a new concept that will get people’s attention - since they’re already trying to figure out what to do for Lent, it gives them something to think about.
• Present it in the Church bulletin
• Present it to CCD students – it’s a great way to get children of all ages more involved in Lent. (Have each class/grade discuss the concept, count their positive acts, and track them. After Easter, announce the totals performed)
• Present it to school students (Have classes/grades discuss the concept, count their positive acts and track them. After Easter, announce the totals performed)
• Mention it on the Parish web site – it could include an overview, the text from the letter, a link to LentenPositiveActs.com , and suggestions on positive acts.
• Allow us to continue spreading it around the world with your Parish included as a testimonial. For example, the introduction such as“…this started with St. ____ Parish in ____, NJ. Their vision is to bring Lenten Positive Acts to all the Christians of the world…” We can spread the word without mentioning your Parish or Church, though it gives the concept great credibility. When people get emails mentioning any type of mission being performed, they pay more attention when it can be verified. They’ll look up your Parish on the web, check the site, and see that Lenten Positive Acts is listed. They’ll then pass it on to their friends, etc.

If 1 person performs a single positive act toward another person, and they may not have done so otherwise – it was a success. Since a single positive act is all that’s needed to create a chain reaction, there’s no limit to its potential. Now imagine the chain reactions possible when people all over the world participate…

That performing positive acts becomes a good habit for people...that they continue to perform the acts every day...and that they stay in that mindset. Imagine the possibilities…

Forward the site to everyone you know, and ask them to do the same.

OK, so no one has actually asked that question…yet. 🙂  When they do, the answer will be to please contact us at info@LentenPositiveActs.com.  We'd appreciate your help!