Lent is once again enfolding us

Once again, as I anticipate six weeks of Lent, I hear the Prophet Joel cry out on God’s behalf:  ‘come back to me with all your heart’.

There is something so tender in those few words.  Lent reminds us of God’s love constantly reaching out to us through all the wonderings of our hearts.  I find myself reflecting on where I have wandered this past year. What has captivated my attention so that it occupies my thoughts, words, actions and yes my heart’s attentiveness?  How have I let go the relationship of intimacy that has characterized our relationship over the years?  Where has my heart gone?

Having a wonderful opportunity last weekend to spend time in silence and solitude with God at Lebh Shomea House of Prayer began the call of God to ‘come back’.  I was able to see how the responsibilities of everyday life have become a major preoccupation of my life rather than a response to the God who engenders life.  My heart was stirred so palpably that I could feel the urgency to make some significant changes in how I live each day.  I discovered the six weeks of Lent were perfect in terms of creating a discipline that was more reflective of my vocation.

“Come back to me with all your heart” is not a chastisement but rather an experience of God’s eternal longing for each of us.  God desires to love us and invites our loving as a response.  Our ‘coming back’ is to our ‘first Love’.  It is to the One who first loved us, knows us and continues to lure us deeper and deeper into the Mystery of being loved.

Please join with me in a journey into and through Lent.  Together we can dedicate our lives once again in the direction of Love.  Together we can watch and listen to the unfolding story of the life of Jesus who shows us how to ‘come back’ to the One who comes to us. Together we can embrace the One who embraces us.

It is indeed Lent!