Taking faith by the hand

Editor’s note: During the Lenten season, Herald Staff Writer Jenalea Myers has written regular updates on the Birzer family, their chosen sacrifices and their Catholic faith.

While most of Ottawa is quiet and dark in the wee hours each Friday, Betty Birzer made her way to Sacred Heart Catholic Church.

She spent the time between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m. reflecting, praying.

The hour is called adoration, and it’s just one of several practices many Catholics like Birzer and others of faith commit to during Lent, 40 days from Ash Wednesday to Easter that represent the time Jesus spent in the desert, where the Bible says he endured temptation by Satan.

“It’s a really nice time to spend with God and be one with God,” Birzer said of adoration. “Until you experience it, you don’t really understand it.”

Making sacrifices

She spent Lent focusing on going to bed before midnight, not snacking after 9 p.m. and not drinking Diet Coke.

“I haven’t had a Diet Coke,” she said. “I’ve had a couple cravings, though.”

After Easter, Birzer might stick with her pop-free lifestyle.

“I think I’m really going to try,” she said.

Along the way, Birzer has had help from her daughters, Jennifer, a senior at Ottawa High School, and Jaime, a freshman at OHS.

“We help each other,” Birzer said. “They’d say, ‘Mom, it’s past 9 o’clock. Don’t be eating anything.’”

This year for Lent, Jaime gave up chocolate, while Jennifer focused her efforts on desserts.

“It hasn’t been too hard,” Jennifer said. “After a couple weeks, it gets better.”

Jaime has admitted it’s been difficult to avoid chocolate.

“I’ve seen a lot of chocolate that I really wanted, but not being able to have it has made me realize that there are a lot of other good snacks that I forgot about,” she said previously.

Finding faith

For many, Lent is a time to explore becoming a part of the church, a time to go through the process of becoming Catholic.

“This year, we’re looking at about 20 people who are going to be joining the church and/or partaking in the sacraments of initiation,” Ziegler said.

As for why so many people choose to turn toward the church during the Lenten season, Ziegler has a few ideas.

“It’s probably the Holy Spirit at work,” he said. “The Holy Spirit is always at work, but many families come at Easter time and are looking forward to spring, to new life and new growth.”

And it’s possible people are more open to faith during that time, he said.

“At that moment, hearts are naturally more open to receiving the Holy Spirit,” he said. “People are seeking good for their lives, and the Holy Spirit is always there to knock on that door when it’s presented.”

Reflection and prayer

“There’s praying through the different steps he went through,” Birzer said. “The prayers help you reflect on each station.”

Those steps are 14 stages that are depicted with pictures that help those who go through the stations imagine themselves there, Birzer said.

“In real life, if we were living in Christ’s time, we maybe would have been a bystander who would have walked the journey with him to his death,” Ziegler said.

Today, known as Holy Saturday, the Birzers planned to travel to Ellinwood to spend Easter with family.

The weekend will bring games, an Easter egg hunt and, of course, time for Mass and fellowship.

“We go to my grandma’s house, and I look forward to seeing our family,” Jennifer said.

Keeping in touch

She had the best luck reconnecting with a foreign exchange student from Japan the family hosted a few years ago.

“She was like a third daughter while she was with us,” she said.

Looking toward next year, Birzer thinks a commitment to a cleaner house might be in order.

“I need to get rid of clutter,” she said, laughing.  

While religions may observe the Lenten season differently, Ziegler is sure of one similarity.

“However you celebrate it, it’s a wonderful thing,” he said.