Sometimes the season of Lent makes us feel the same way. Lent is a time of penitence and sacrifice – but who wants to do that? It would be much easier to fly away for a nice holiday for the next six weeks, and avoid this season altogether. We could come back just in time for Easter, rested and refreshed, having gotten away from it all for a bit.
In the Gospel today, Jesus gets away from it all. But he doesn’t buy a plane ticket for the beach or the mountains; instead he heads out into the desert. This is no holiday he’s taking – Jesus is heading out into the starkness and isolation of the desert not for a vacation but to confront the devil. No doubt, it probably wasn’t exactly what Jesus wanted to do at the beginning of his ministry, right after his baptism in the Jordan; he was probably anxious to begin healing and teaching and proclaiming the Good News. But he also knew that facing the devil was what was most pressing – it was the urgent task at hand. By facing the devil’s temptations, Jesus is able to begin undoing the long curse of slavery to sin that had begun with Adam and Eve. Where they had fallen short in trust and confidence and God, he holds firm; where they had disobeyed, he is obedient – an obedience that continues all the way until Calvary. His freedom is stronger than the devil’s temptation – his commitment to his Father’s will deeper than the allure of what is offered. In the starkness of the desert, Jesus confronts evil and defeats it.
He Was in the Desert (1909) by Vasily Polenov
The season of Lent is given to us for just the same reason: to help us look at those things in our spiritual lives that need to be faced, and with God’s help, to deal with them. I know it’s probably not your favorite season of the year; it’s not mine either. But as much as it may not be the kind of escape we might dream of, the Church knows that it’s just the kind of break from the status quo that we need. Too often we are dissuaded in our course by earthly allures, and too often do we fall short of God’s plan because of the devil’s temptations. Lent, then, is a chance to change the narrative – to appreciate anew the freedom that comes from Christ’s grace, if we use this season well.
There is always a temptation, I think, to resist really Lent taking seriously. Maybe, as I mentioned, we are tempted to just sort of check out mentally and spiritually for the next month and a half. Or maybe we are willing to make some surface-level changes, to give up some small thing or two as a token gesture toward the ideal of Lent. Or maybe we fall victim to the secular mindset that can sometimes creep into Lent: of trying to better ourselves in some concrete way – our physiques, our habits, our attitudes – but doing so totally apart from God, without any awareness of the spiritual benefit. Improving ourselves is okay, but without a spirit of conversion as the motivation, we run the risk of simply giving in to self-worship. In Lent, we should be centered on God, not on ourselves.
Lent offers us a great chance to get away from our normal routine. It may not be a vacation, but it can be a kind of spiritual retreat. Perhaps in this season we can pull back from certain responsibilities that aren’t absolutely mandatory, or if we can’t, at least we can do them with a willing spirit of prayer and penance. Perhaps we can try to detach from some of the noise that fills our lives – watch less TV, turn the car radio off, perhaps limit the time we spend on our devices, put our phones in grayscale so they aren’t as attractive to look at. Maybe we can use some of that newfound time for prayer – perhaps a family rosary, or Scripture reading, or keeping a spiritual journal for our daily conversation with God. Perhaps we could consider trying to get to a daily Mass during the week once in a while, or to come to adoration on Wednesday or Saturday afternoons to adore the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament.
For others of us, those efforts may seem too daunting this Lent; we’re being tested too much at the moment. In that case, find some time soon to be refreshed spiritually, to clear away some of the clutter that weighs you down. Perhaps you are in a sort of spiritual desert, distant from God, not feeling his presence, or perhaps knowing you’ve given into temptation and having sinned, separated yourself from God’s grace. If that's so, remember that the answer is never to hide from God, like Adam and Eve did. We need not fear him or run away from him. Jesus has already defeated the devil, and he wants to share that victory with us. If we’re feeling spiritually dry, we can say a prayer for reliance on the Lord, and for a feeling of his renewed presence. If we have sinned, what we need is to have a good heart-to-heart with Jesus, in the context of the sacrament of reconciliation, so that he can share with us the grace and freedom and peace that come with his victory.
Finally, some of us – like yours truly – just need something tangible to do during Lent. That’s why I want to offer you a gift, of sorts, to help you do just that. In your pews, you’ll find a folded piece of cardboard – it’s a CRS Rice Bowl. Catholic Relief Services is the international aid arm of our Church here in the United States and each Lent, this little box is their way of helping us help others in this season. Obviously, it’s a great way to give alms – to put a few dollars in each week as we go through Lent – and perhaps also to fast as well, giving up some pleasure we would normally buy for ourselves and using that money instead to help others. The Rice Bowl also is a visible reminder to enter into prayer – to pray for those less fortunate than ourselves, perhaps even to learn more about them and how we as the Church in America can make a real difference in their lives. Take a Rice Bowl home this week and use it throughout Lent. I guarantee it will make your Lenten season a more meaningful one.
Friends, whatever you may need to face in your spiritual life this Lent, do it with Jesus, not apart from him. We can all benefit from a change of scenery, at times, but we should never seek to get away from the liberating embrace of his mercy, from the reliance that comes from his loving presence. In Lent, those gifts are offered to us anew. If we accept them, we can meet the trials and temptations of these forty days not with fear but with confidence, for with the Lord by our side they will be overcome.
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