5th Day of Lent

It is the 5th day of Lent today, and I am thinking about the fragility of life. I am mourning with a former student, and current friend, of mine who lost her mother this weekend.

Lent is based on the idea of journeying for 40 days, as Jesus did, in the wilderness. Jesus suffered in the wilderness, undoubtedly felt great pain, and ultimately triumphed, in the desert, over the temptation He faced. So, in Lent, we too journey for 40 days. We are journeying through a wilderness of sorts. The thing we must remember that the wilderness of Lent, though meaningful, is still just a manufactured wilderness. The 40 days each year are crucial in our development, but we have created, in some sense, the wilderness that we journey through. And?

The reality is that there are real wildernesses that we will have to traverse in our lives. My friend is currently facing such a wilderness with the loss of her mother. The real wilderness is nothing like the manufactured wilderness. The Lenten wilderness is a time of training for us, so that, when we are facing down a true wilderness we will not lose heart. We can remember that the Christ walked through a real wilderness and triumphed, and we can remember that we have walked through the Lenten wilderness and survived. That the Lenten wilderness is manufactured does not detract from its meaning. It serves a purpose, even as real, dark wildernesses do.

Rest In Peace - Susie Johnson

PEACE