Holy Week this year is extraordinary. Most of us will have to spend it within the confines of our own homes, with limited access to things we are so used to.

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However, this doesn’t mean that we should be lax on our faith. It’s rather a great opportunity to intensify our efforts to be “God-like”. Here are some meaningful ways to keep the “holy” on Holy Week.

1. Pray without ceasing.

Even though we cannot go to churches to worship physically, we can still worship God spiritually. Whether it’s grace before and after meal, a short praise before we rise from our bed and a thank you before we retire to bed yet again, it would be wise to start and end our days communicating with the one who most loves us.

Many churches are now present in social media and church activities are being streamed online so take advantage of those. We can also read spiritual books and let God speak to us through the holy scriptures. A reminder though that praying is a two-way street. Make sure we also listen to what God has to say.

2. Transmit the faith.

Don’t let kids know of ghosts earlier than they get to learn about God. This extra time we have been given is a great opportunity for us to teach the kids and kids-at-heart inside our homes some stories from the bible. We can also teach them prayers they can cling on to during good times and bad times. Observing or even creating own family Holy Week traditions is a good bonding opportunity.

3. Help those in need.

Charity is the truest form of worship. Especially during this pandemic, we are being called to express our love of God by loving our neighbors. We can donate online through trustworthy organizations or organize our own donation drive. We also don’t need to search very far as our own relatives, household helps, or members of our community might be the ones needing our help.

Help can also come in non-monetary forms. We can give emotional support to friends or even strangers. We can also lend our expertise by teaching even a small group of people online. As was said, nobody is so poor he has nothing to give, and nobody is so rich he has nothing to receive.

4. Try Fasting

The beautiful season of Lent, culminating during the Holy Week is forty days long, enough time for us to develop a habit. Fasting is a spiritual training. Just like physical exercise, it can look complicated and tiresome at the start, but it can get easier once we get the hang of it and once we see results!

Fasting doesn’t only mean fasting from food. We can also fast from gossip, or from that urge to abruptly judge anyone without hearing their side, or to attack people on social media who contradicts our opinions and points of view.

We all have that one delicious food we want to cut out from our diet because we know it’s bad for our health. Or that one annoying trait we know we have but we don’t know how to eliminate for good. Holy Week is a good time to try offering to the Lord not just sacrifices but also our weaknesses, so that He can heal us.

5. Possess joy and sense of humor.

Do we think of God as a god who wants us to be morose or anxious? On the contrary, Easter people believe that the true God who loves us wants us to be happy.

Joy is actually a sign of holiness. It means confidence to triumph each day regardless of circumstances, because we rely not only on what we can do but more importantly on what God can do.

This Holy Week, don’t forget to smile, laugh out loud, exercise to release those happy hormones, or dress up even if you’re just at home. Pursue that passion project waiting for so long to come to fruition. Holiness can be found on things that make us truly and deeply happy after all.