There are signs everywhere, on the road and elsewhere. Here are three that made me stop and think:
In an office:
After coffee break, empty the pots and
stand upside down on the drain board.
Outside a thrift shop:
We exchange anything...
Bring your husband or wife and get a bargain!
And in a safari park:
Elephants:
Please stay in your car Did I read those signs right?!
On Wednesday, we began our Lenten journey from Ashes to Easter.
Lent is a time to renew ourselves, time for a change of heart: to become more aware of God’s presence in our daily life.
Often people search for meaning and purpose in wealth and status and toys. In the process, they forget what truly matters in life.
In this Lenten season, beyond giving up a treat, many people pay closer attention to our relationships with God and one another. Some are using the six-weeks to commit to a lifestyle change: engaging in healthy behaviors like daily walks, eating well, etc. Within these simple activities, reflection upon our many blessings finds a fertile home.
The Book of Genesis speaks about God’s covenant with Noah and the human family, summed up in the simple but splendid phrase: You are my people; and I am your God. The sign of this covenant is a rainbow, inviting us to see the link between heaven and earth, between God and ourselves, and to rededicate ourselves to our baptismal promises.
The letter of Peter views the history of our salvation thru the lens of Jesus’s death and resurrection. Jesus re-established a right relationship between us and God. And the Spirit of God deepens that relationship. The image of Noah and the Ark alludes to the waters of our baptism and our call to holiness.
In the Gospel, Jesus is in the wilderness for 40 days where he overcomes the dark or evil forces of human existence, and then begins his public ministry of preaching that the kingdom of God is at hand: believe in the Good News.
My good friends, this Lenten season let us examine the course or direction of our own lives. Are we on the right track? Do we have our priorities straight? If we’re a bit off course, how can we get back in the groove?
The Church offers three Lenten practices to help us steer in the right direction: prayer, fasting and almsgiving.
Let's treat ourselves to these three ages-old disciplines of our Christian/Catholic community.
• Yes, re-treat ourselves to prayer. Prayer is an awareness of our absolute dependency upon God, a grateful response to God for our fragile lives. Prayer simply brings to consciousness the presence of God that is already around us and within us.
Now there are many approaches to prayer: like the Our Father, this Eucharistic liturgy, and prayers of silence or petition. All of these are windows or pathways into the presence of God. How often do we pray? Am I entering as fully as possible into this liturgy by participating wholeheartedly in song, and listening attentively to the Word of God.
• Second, re-treat ourselves to fasting. For the early Christians, foregoing food “enabled the hungry to eat.” But fasting is more than foodstuff. Our Lenten fast can mean doing without anger, impatience, selfishness, negative judgments about others, excessive alcohol. Yes, doing without whatever prevents us from living a life of discipleship with Jesus.
• Fasting and almsgiving are Gospel twins. In early Christianity there were no government agencies to provide assistance to the needy. Almsgiving was seen as an essential addition to prayer and fasting, not only in Lent, but every day. Let's re-treat ourselves to sharing what we have. Share our time – stay in touch with friends and loved ones, the sick, people all alone. Share our talents by volunteering where we can. Share our resources with needy people: how about Catholic Relief Services or St. Vincent de Paul or Catholic Charities. Share ourselves – smile more often and let others know that we want them to share our joy.
Yes, this Lenten season calls for a change of heart. It’s time to become more aware of God’s presence all around us and within us.
So I invite all of us to re-discover and re-treat ourselves to:
prayer,
fasting, and
almsgiving
Let's refocus during these forty days of Lent on what truly matters in life: our relationship with God and our fellow human beings. Have a grace-filled Lenten season.
