1 Franciscan Way

Lord Jesus  when You went to the desert       and stayed those forty long days             what was in Your Heart                            in Your gaze?            was it love burning bright                    with a longing to give?            was it silence grown loud                     with a longing to give?       Eternally the Father is there             and You are there             eternally giving                             and receiving             Perhaps You entered more fully                   away from noise of streets                   and smell of foods             a renewed intensity of love                   for One who is always new And yet I also know       that the desert, the hunger, the tempting       was a gift in view of me             that you might receive the gift of me                   and I the gift of You. so draw me close       and draw me away             into the silence             the want

Here we are at the first Sunday of Lent.  In the Gospel for today, we hear the account of Jesus’ temptation in the desert.  The words of the Enemy are strikingly similar to those used in the Garden.  “IF you are the Son of God…”  “Did God REALLY tell you not to eat the fruit of the tree?”  The temptation of the New Adam echoes the temptation of the first.  St. Paul tells us that because of the sin of that first Adam, many died but that the grace of God “overflows for the many” because of the gift of Jesus Christ (Romans 5:12-19).  Do you believe that?  Do you trust in the grace and mercy that is available to you, freely given by a God who is madly in love with you and who has made you his own?  Living in our deepest identity as beloved sons and daughters is the key to resisting the temptations, lies, questions, and doubts posed by the Enemy.  Trust in the Father’s love and be not afraid of the things that will come as we journey in the desert of Lent.