Pope Francis has warned Catholics against spiritual laziness, urging them not to abuse God's mercy by failing to act now to correct sinful behaviour.
In his Sunday Angelus, Pope Francis said the possibility of conversion is not unlimited.
The moment must therefore be seized immediately if it is not to be lost forever.
"We can think in this Lent: what must I do to get closer to the Lord," he said.
It was too easy to think: "No, no, I'll wait for the next Lent", to change behaviour.
"But will you be alive next Lent? Let us think today, each of us: what must I do before this mercy of God that awaits me and that always forgives? What should I do?
"We can rely heavily on God's mercy, but without abusing it. We must not justify spiritual laziness, but increase our commitment to respond promptly to this mercy with sincerity of heart.
"In the time of Lent, the Lord invites us to conversion. Each of us must feel challenged by this call, correcting something in our lives, in our own way of thinking, acting and living relationships with others.
"At the same time, we must imitate the patience of God who trusts in the ability of all to be able to 'get up' and resume the journey."
Pope Francis was preaching from the Gospel for the third Sunday of Lent where Jesus tells the parable of the barren fig, "the symbol of indifferent and arid humanity".
After the Angelus, Pope Francis prayed for the success of talks in Nicaragua and referred to the beatification in Tarragona, Spain, of Mariano Mullerat i Soldevila, a father and a doctor was a devout Catholic, and who was killed in 1936 by militiamen at the age of 39, "in odium fidei" or because of hatred for the faith.
He also remembered missionary martyrs. "During 2018, throughout the world, numerous bishops, priests, nuns and lay faithful suffered violence; while 40 missionaries were killed, almost double compared to the previous year. Remembering this contemporary ordeal of brothers and sisters persecuted or killed because of their faith in Jesus, is a duty of gratitude for the whole Church, but also a stimulus to testify with courage our faith and our hope in Him who on the Cross has hatred and violence won forever with his love. We pray for the many victims of the latest inhuman attacks in Nigeria and Mali. The Lord welcome these victims, heal the wounded, console the family and convert cruel hearts."
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