Lent…or Spring Training?

Ash Wednesday begins the 40 days of Lent, when we remember that Jesus spent 40 days in the desert fasting and resisting temptation. The day before Ash Wednesday, known by many as “Shrove Tuesday” or “Fat Tuesday,” is a chance to feast and indulge – at St Alban’s it was an opportunity to enjoy a Mardi Gras dinner replete with jambalaya, red beans and rice, bread pudding, and king cake. and We do this in preparation of our own fasting on Ash Wednesday and throughout Lent.

As Jesus grew hungry from fasting in the desert, he faced the first of three temptations. Satan appeared before him and told him to turn stones into bread. But Jesus resisted, knowing that he was being tempted to do something God did not want. He knew the word of God was just as important as bread to survival.

He was then brought to the top of a building in Jerusalem and told that, if he truly was the Son of God, he should jump from the building and angels would carry him to safety. Jesus once again resisted, knowing not to challenge God.

On the third temptation, Jesus was brought to the top of a mountain and told that all the kingdoms he saw would be his if he knelt before Satan. But Jesus resisted again, proclaiming that it is only right to give worship to God.

Scripture lists many instances of Jesus continuing the practice of withdrawing to pray. The time of Lent reminds us to learn from his example and withdraw for focus on prayer and meditation. 

Mark 1:35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.

I am reminded of Spring Training for professional baseball teams. It is a time when ballplayers withdraw to practice their respective skills. If it is fielding then fielding. If pitching, then pitching. They focus on conditioning and learning their place on the team in preparation for the season of play. In like fashion, we practice withdrawal in prayer to learn our place; the place God ordained when creating the life that we inhabit. This is our time for “spring training” so that we may return to the “field of play” ready to take our place as part of the team.

Our lives in these modern times are neither wholly solitary nor wholly communal. Withdrawing, like Jesus, to a desolate place to commune with God is an act of receiving the Word and responding in prayer. It is time to let go of what we “know” and enjoy being close to the Father in mystery and awe. Then, we return to the bustle of life renewed by the Spirit to enter as “light” and “bread” to a hungry, harassed, and helpless world. 

Matthew 9:36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.

This annual season of Lent is a time to remember…practice makes perfect. Take time to sit quietly. Think of this not as an achievement but an instrument…a skill to be finely honed. It is an opportunity to open our lives and souls to Him for whom we were made…to know and enjoy the Holy Presence of the Creator of Heaven and Earth. 

“All of humanity’s problems stem from our inability to sit quietly in a room alone,” – Blase Pascal (622-1662)

If you’re breathing…this is for you.