Why I’m Excited for the Ascension Press Crux Challenge This Lent

There is something about Lent that always feels like a deep exhale.

Not because it is easy. Not because it is comfortable. But because it is clear.

Clarity is peaceful. And Lent, when embraced intentionally, brings clarity back into our lives.

This year, I am especially excited because I am participating in the Ascension Press Crux Challenge. It is a structured Lenten challenge built around four pillars:

1. A dietary fast

2. Daily intentional movement

3. Daily prayer with Scripture

4. A nightly examination of conscience

If you want the full breakdown, you can check it out at ascensionpress.com/crux.

But what has me most energized is not the difficulty of the challenge. It is the simplicity of it.

Lent Is Not About Adding Stress. It Is About Removing Noise.

In the fitness world, I often tell clients that progress is not just about adding more. It is about removing what does not serve the mission.

Remove ultra processed snacks. Remove mindless scrolling. Remove inconsistency.

Lent works the same way spiritually.

The Crux Challenge invites participants to remove unnecessary comforts in order to focus more fully on Christ. That removal creates space. And that space becomes peace.

The Dietary Fast: Simplicity Creates Freedom

For my fast, I am:

• Not eating sweets or baked goods (including the little snacks my kids leave behind!)

• Not drinking anything but water and black coffee (bye bye sparkling water, diet soda, alcohol, and yummy coffee)

• Not eating out (The Lord's chicken at Chick-fil-a will have to wait until Easter)

On paper, that sounds strict. But in practice, it feels freeing.

There is a certain mental clutter that comes with constant food decisions, convenience purchases, and little indulgences. When you simplify your intake, you simplify your life.

Fewer decisions. Less impulse. More intention.

There is peace in that.

This is not about demonizing food. It is about reordering desire. It is about learning again that “man shall not live by bread alone” (Matthew 4:4). When sweets disappear, something deeper is revealed: how often we reach for comfort instead of Christ.

And here is the beautiful part: once you strip those things away, you realize you did not need them nearly as much as you thought.

Daily Intentional Movement: Offering the Body Back to God

The challenge also includes daily intentional movement.

As someone who lives and breathes strength training and disciplined fitness, this one resonates deeply. But this is not about chasing PRs or optimizing hypertrophy. It is about stewardship.

Lent reminds us that the body is not an idol, but it is also not disposable. It is a gift.

Daily movement during Lent becomes prayer in action. A walk offered up. Pushups done with gratitude. Mobility work performed with intention.

It is amazing how different exercise feels when it is not about aesthetics, but about offering.

When you move daily, you reconnect with your body in a grounded, humble way. It becomes less about performance and more about participation in God’s design.

Daily Prayer with Scripture: Anchoring the Day

Without prayer, Lent just becomes a diet.

The Crux Challenge centers daily Scripture. That alone transforms everything.

When you begin the day in the Word, something shifts. The anxieties of work, the pressure to produce, the endless notifications all take their proper place.

Christ becomes central.

And when Christ is central, the noise fades.

There is a reason Lent can become one of the most peaceful seasons of the year. It is not because external stress disappears. It is because internal order is restored.

We pray more. We eat simpler. We move with intention. We examine our hearts honestly.

That is a formula for peace.

The Nightly Examination of Conscience: Radical Clarity

The final pillar is a nightly examination of conscience.

This one might be the most transformative.

Every night, you pause. You review the day with God. You ask:

Where did I respond with charity? Where did I fail to love? Where did pride creep in? Where did grace show up?

Most of us go to sleep carrying vague guilt or unprocessed tension. The examination of conscience eliminates that fog.

You name your sins. You thank God for His mercy. You ask for the grace to grow tomorrow.

And then you sleep.

That kind of honesty brings deep peace. Not because you are perfect. But because you are aligned.

Lent as a Season of Peace

So often, people think of Lent as heavy, somber, or restrictive.

But properly lived, Lent is peaceful.

When you remove sweets, distractions, excess spending, and indulgence, you feel lighter.

When you move daily, you feel grounded.

When you pray daily, you feel anchored.

When you examine your conscience nightly, you feel clean.

Peace is not the absence of discipline. Peace is the fruit of order.

And Lent is a season of holy reordering.

Why Structure Helps

One of the reasons I am excited about the Ascension Press Crux Challenge is that it provides structure.

Structure reduces decision fatigue. Structure makes commitment tangible. Structure transforms vague intentions into concrete action.

We do this in fitness all the time. A clear training plan produces better results than random workouts.

The same is true spiritually.

A clear Lenten framework allows you to enter the season fully instead of drifting through it.

An Invitation

If you have ever wanted a more focused Lent, I encourage you to check out the Crux Challenge at ascensionpress.com/crux.

You do not need to copy my exact fast. You do not need to replicate my movement plan. But consider embracing the four pillars:

A simplified diet. Daily intentional movement. Daily Scripture prayer. Nightly examination of conscience.

Ask yourself: what unnecessary thing is crowding out Christ in your life right now?

Lent is not about self punishment. It is about self mastery ordered toward self gift.

When we strip away the excess, we make room.

When we make room, Christ fills it.

And when Christ fills it, peace follows.

I am genuinely excited for this Lent. Not because it will be easy. But because it will be clear. Focused. Ordered.

And in a noisy world, that kind of peace is a gift.