Saturday of the 3rd Week of Lent
Hos 5:15-6:6
Lk 18:9-14
“…what I want is love, not sacrifice”
Whenever Lent comes around, I instinctively begin drawing up a list of commitments — how much more time to spend in prayer, what to offer in almsgiving, and what to give up for my Lenten fast.
Now that I have stopped working, I feel that I should be doing even more for the Lord, especially during this season. So I add new prayer routines, join retreats, and sign up for more online programmes.
This year, the Ascension app’s Lenten programme includes four daily ‘tasks’: spiritual reading, exercise, fasting, and a nightly examen. You can tick them off once they are completed for the day.
And I have been faithfully ticking them off.
But every now and then, I catch myself wondering: am I truly becoming more prayerful? Is my heart really with the Lord? Or am I simply concerned with completing spiritual tasks? Am I offering sacrifices out of love and gratitude, or am I subtly trying to show God how much I am giving up for Him?
I see this same tension reflected in my interactions with my two teenage goddaughters.
This Lent, I have been sending them a daily quiz as a sort of ad-hoc catechism. One of the questions was, “What biblical event does the time of Lent represent?”. I told them that the answer was in the Gospel passage for the first Sunday of Lent.
One of them admitted that she hadn’t paid attention at Mass because it was in Chinese.
“What’s the point of attending Mass if you just sit through it without listening?” I asked.
“But technically I still attended Mass,” she replied. Technically.
Because Sunday Mass is, for Catholics, a day of ‘obligation’, she had fulfilled her duty. She had ticked the box. How could I dispute that?
Another time, I encouraged them to choose one Lenten practice to observe. One of them said she would “pray more”, and then began negotiating what exactly that meant. Eventually, we settled on ten minutes of prayer a day.
I do not know if she is actually doing it, but the negotiation weighed heavily on my heart. Should prayer be measured by the clock? Should love be negotiated?
And then I realised — I am not so different.
Today’s Scripture from Hosea reminds us: “What I want is love, not sacrifice”. God is not impressed by completed checklists or fulfilled obligations. He desires a heart turned toward Him — a relationship, not empty rituals.
The danger of Lent is not that we do too little, but that we do much without love. Our spiritual practices can easily become mechanical rather than relational.
There are only two more weeks left in this Lenten season. I have begun paring down my list of commitments — not because sacrifice is unimportant, but because love must come first.
To love Him is to be with Him, to spend time listening to Him — not simply doing things for Him.
Perhaps instead of asking what sacrifices we are making this Lent, the better question is this: Brothers and sisters, how are we loving the Lord more?
(Today’s OXYGEN by Esther Leet)
Prayer: Lord Jesus, You desire my love more than my sacrifices. Purify my intentions this Lent. Teach me to seek You not through checklists or obligations, but through a sincere and open heart that longs to be with You. Help me to love You more deeply, to listen more attentively, and to offer everything I do out of gratitude and trust. Amen.
Thanksgiving: Thank You, Lord, for gently and patiently drawing me back whenever my faith becomes routine or mechanical. Thank You for reminding me that what You desire most is not a checklist spirituality, but the sincerity of my love. May everything I do flow from love for You. Amen.
OXYGEN 
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