What’s Your Wilderness This Lent?

Ash Wednesday is upon us once again- Lent has begun. According to the USCCB website, “The forty-day length of Lent is rooted in the biblical usage of the number forty. Forty is typically indicative of a time of testing, trial, penance, purification, and renewal. In the New Testament, forty days is the length of Jesus’ time of trial in the desert in preparation for his public ministry, proclaiming the Gospel.”

The 40 days prepare us for something. Jesus’ time in the desert preceded the start of His public ministry- no coincidence there. We are a resurrection people, so we are preparing for Easter. We are preparing to receive the joy and the hope, and also to live out the demand that the resurrection places on our lives as followers of Jesus: to spread the gospel message and to live in a way that accepts God’s gift of eternal life. Aiming for heaven is easier said than done!

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 

-Matthew 4:1

What I find striking is that the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness. Fasting in the desert was not easy or desirable, but that’s what was asked of Jesus, so He surrendered and was obedient. I’ve been taking this to prayer, and the Lord helped me to realize that what He asks of us is not always easy or comfortable. Actually, what He asks of us might at times be the hard things that we downright want to avoid. But He asks these things of us for a reason- for the good of our souls and for carrying out the missions that He has for each of us according to His plan. And, He always helps us with the implementation- all we have to do is ask for the grace.

I began praying for the Holy Spirit to show me where God wants to lead me this Lent. Taking the question of “What is my wilderness this Lent?” to prayer has been so fruitful for me that I wanted to share it in case it can help others too. Sure enough, the Lord put on my heart a particular way He wants me to grown this Lent, a particular way that He wants to shape my heart. Offering things up, spending more time in prayer, and practicing certain virtues are some tangible actions during Lent that will grow my heart in this particular direction in time for Easter. I’m trying to choose specific penances that are aimed at my growth in particular virtues.

There’s been a lot going around about “Don’t give up chocolate for Lent; that won’t make you a better person.” And it’s true that just refraining from chocolate won’t make you a better person… if you don’t use what you give up as a prayer, as an offering to console Jesus on the cross. The point of giving something up is to deny ourselves of something that we like so that we train our hearts to seek God above even the things we like most here on earth. So then every time we reach for the chocolate, we think of God instead and have the opportunity to use that small act of denial as a prayer. We can use that prayer to console Jesus on the cross and grow in relationship with Him in the process, and we can use it as a prayer for a specific intention for someone or for our world. There is so much power in denying ourselves something (or denying ourselves different things on different days) if we do it with proper disposition of heart and offer it to the Lord. There’s a reason fasting is mentioned in many places in the Bible- it’s for our own good!

It’s even more powerful when we give up something that is distracting us from God and preventing our growth in virtue. We can instead use that time in prayer, daily Mass, adoration, and in practice of virtue. The point of Lent is to transform our hearts, so whatever we choose to do this Lent should stretch us and have transformation of the heart as the goal. That’s been a helpful thing for me to remember as I’ve thought about what to do this Lent.

Where is God leading you? What is the wilderness He is calling you to this Lent? What can you give up that will sharpen your focus on Him, and what can you proactively do that will help you grow in virtue? Those are the questions I’m asking myself. God’s answers are personal and specific to each of us- how amazing is that. God will show us if we ask, and He will walk with us and give us the grace to carry it out if we ask. We don’t have to do it alone, which is the only reason it is possible. We don’t want to be the same people at Easter that we are today- we want to be renewed and closer to Jesus and ready for mission! So here we go, Lent. Praying that we all have a spiritually fruitful 40 days. Amen.

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