My oldest son has a phrase that we as adults usually don't say quite so bluntly; "I want what I want." And the truth is that we all want what we want. The season of Lent invites us to rethink what it is we want. Do we want so that we might have or so that all might have. Are our desires rooted in self-sacrifice or are they self-seeking. Do we seek to gain the entire world or become lost in service to God?
During this season we also ponder and meditate upon the sacrifice of Jesus and our call to be like Jesus. A friend of mine found this article by Christine Jeske on sacrifice. Jeske offers a vivid picture of Sacrifice and what it meant for Jesus and could mean for us.
Lent is also about repentance. Alexander Schmemann shares that:
Repentance remains fruitless without the desire and decision to change life, to go back to God, to begin the movement of ascension and purification. We must realize that we have lost our spiritual beauty and purity and we must want to recover them.[1]
Yesterday we were reminded that we are made of dust and to dust we shall return. However, we must also remember that when God breathed into the dirt person, God called that human being good. Even though we have 'sinned and fallen short of God's glory' we were made in that glory and to that we are called. The beauty of God is that we are on a journey to be made into the likeness of Christ. Because of Christ's sacrifice and self-denial we are offered grace. May that grace be our strength as we seek to deny ourselves and give ourselves over to God. May our spiritual beauty be remade through God's hands this season.
A prayer:
[1] Schmemann, Alexander (2011-06-28). Great Lent: A School of Repentance Its Meaning for Orthodox Christians (Kindle Locations 43-45). Kindle Edition.
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