Reflections on the Gospel Reading for the Day
Let us too take up our cross this Lent.
Jesus said to his disciples and all who could hear him: “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Lk 9:23). We can best take up our cross daily by putting into practice the three pillars of Lent offered yesterday, which are almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. These disciplines aid us in resisting the temptations of pride, power, pleasure, honor, and wealth.
Giving ourselves some time to be still and to breathe deeply is a good action to begin Lent. From this place of letting go and just stopping from everything else, we can then pray about how we can put these pillars of Lent into practice for these next forty days. If forty days are too much, think about the next week, or even just today.
As we make steps to slow down and be still, we will also need to be aware of our own resistance. We also need to be more aware of our sinful inclination to be indifferent or fearful of being present to those in need within our reach. Praying and seeking the help of God to give us the discernment and the eyes to see who among us are in need, and the courage to act and to give of ourselves to others can also be a good start.
Returning to prayer throughout the day will help to establish a habit and rhythm of prayer. This often is accomplished best when we schedule set times to meditate on the readings of Lent, to be still and rest in the Lord before the Eucharist in adoration or present in the tabernacle, pray the rosary, walk or sit among the beauty of God’s creation, and/or spend some quiet time reading a spiritual book, or the life of a saint. It is also good to just be silent and still. While at work, it can be as simple as stopping for a few moments at set times, say every three hours, to take a breath, and repeat a verse or short prayer, such as, “God come to my assistance, Lord make haste to help me.”
Each day it is also helpful to evaluate what we consume, what time and energy we expend, and discern, what we can fast from. Define the types of food that really aren’t healthy for us, what activities that we can let go of so we can devote more time to practices that empower, encourage, and lift up others as well as ourselves. We can fast from thinking, speaking, or acting in any way that is unkind, belittling, or demeaning.
When we put something in place that will help build a foundation for a closer walk with Jesus we are taking something out of our life that could lead us astray. Jesus guides us in today’s Gospel to take up our cross and follow him, meaning we are to discipline ourselves so as to free ourselves from that which enslaves us.
We can take up our cross today when we make time to pray, to be still, and follow God’s will. We can take up our cross when we fast from any negative, demeaning, or derogatory thoughts, words, and actions and replace them with thoughts, words, and actions that are encouraging, hopeful, and loving. We can take up our cross when we embrace opportunities to give of our time, talent, and treasure to build up and provide access to those around us. Let us take up our cross today and each day during this season of Lent so to know better the One who died on the cross for us, the One who gave his life for us that we might have life and have it to the full!
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Photo: Jesus with the Cross, Mission San Luis del Rey de Francia, Oceanside, CA
Link for the Mass readings for Thursday, February 18, 2020.
Why ashes? Why Lent?
In our Gospel reading from Matthew today, Jesus presents us with the three pillars of Lent: almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. With each pillar, he cautions his disciples to resist the temptation of engaging in these spiritual practices such that the focus is placed on us, such that we believe we ought to receive accolades for our efforts. The purpose of almsgiving, prayer, and fasting is to grow in true humility, which is placing ourselves in a posture of surrendering our will to God, to come to a place within our being that we can love as Jesus loves us, to will the good of the other as other for their own sake, not seeking anything in return.
We give to others not “to win the praise of others”, not even to receive thanks, but specifically because another is in need of our help. We pray, not “that others may see” us, to puff ourselves up, but to empty ourselves into the arms of our Father, recognizing how dependent on him we really are. We fast not “to look gloomy like the hypocrites”, so to draw attention to ourselves, but we fast to discipline ourselves such that we are not enslaved to our passions. We discipline ourselves, so as to walk on the path of freedom for excellence and engage in the fullness of the life God made us for.
Today as you receive your ashes sprinkled upon your heads, and even if there are those reading who do not (like myself), we are reminded that from dust we have come and to dust, we will return. We are created, finite beings, that are given a limited time to live our life on this earth. This is important to acknowledge so that we resist the temptation of taking our life, the gift of our time on this earth, for granted.
We are also reminded to repent and believe in the Gospel. Jesus, help us to recognize and to be contrite for our sinful thoughts, words, and actions and reveal to us the empty promises of our distractions and temptations. Through our participation in almsgiving, prayer, and fasting, help us to experience our restlessness, and seek not to appease it with finite, material things that will not last, but to come to recognize that our fulfillment will come only when we find our rest in the One who has made us for himself, our loving God and Father who awaits us with arms wide open.
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Photo credit: https://www.cathopic.com/arito
Link for the Mass readings for Ash Wednesday, February 17, 2021