Beloved in Christ,
"Before man are life and death, good and evil, whichever he chooses shall be given him" (Sirach 15: 17). Making choices is integral to human end, temporal and eternal. The human person, made in the image and likeness of God, is equipped with intellect and will to decide the end they desire. Each choice we make carries consequences. In making choices, we have immediate and eternal goals. Our choices are moral in nature and purpose. God created us with the capacity to make good choices that lead to eternal life, but God also gives us the freedom to choose either the path to life and good or the contrary path. God has placed a huge responsibility on us. And we make our choices about what and where we want to be time and time again throughout our lifetimes.
Lent is a liturgical time that the Church offers us to make those choices. In a matter of days, we will begin Lent with the imposition of ashes on our foreheads, indicating our mortality and the choices we have to walk or not walk the path of the cross that leads to a good and holy life. Lent. We have been here before. We have gone through the path of the liturgical circle over and over. If we look back, we can determine whether we made good, life-enhancing choices. Did we? Or, did we discover that we did not take advantage of the sacred season, with all the opportunities it provides for the good of our souls? Do we find ourselves just going through the motions, making little or no sacrifices that engender growth in good and towards life?
Making choices can be cruel. What do I mean? So often, we have to decide between the pleasure or comfort we are accustomed to and a new, difficult path that the Spirit of God will reveal to us. The old, familiar path, even when it hasn't drawn us deeper into the moral good, is always difficult to let go of. We always have the opportunity, especially during the penitential seasons like Lent or Advent, to re-route our path. That is the choice we must make. It can be painful, but we are capable of making that choice because God's grace is sufficient for us. What are the good and life-giving choices we want to make during this holy season of Lent? How can we make this a transformative Lent and avoid the same old routine that has not brought growth to our spiritual life?
We must think about this year's Lent differently. We must remember that we have a God-given potential to choose the good and life. We must be willing to do the hard work of surrendering all to the Holy Spirit, who molds and renews us. The sacrifices and penances the season of Lent offers us abound. We begin with abstinence and fasting on Ash Wednesday. We have a choice to make: either make a big deal of it or fall into our old routine of doing nothing significant to indicate our desire for encounter or intimacy with God. Will the ashes remind us of our mortality and the need to enter into the narrow road that leads to eternal life? Are we going to strive to grow in virtue? Are we going to pray and fast more? Are we going to make a good confession? Are we going to be a moral light and salt in the world? Are we ready to choose to see the Gospel truth and live by its spirit or decide to stick to our old, sometimes unexamined ways, not in conformity with God's will?
Come this Ash Wednesday, let us choose to enter deeply into the spiritual warfare to choose moral good and eternal life by joining Jesus in the desert. Let's commit as much as we can, choosing life and good over death and evil. God promises to give us what we choose, what we seek, what we will, with the help of his grace. What is your choice going to be? life or death, good or evil? You are the one to make that choice. I get to make my choice as well.
Have a spiritually enlightening Lent.
In Christ's love,
Fr. Alayode, OP
"Before man are life and death, good and evil, whichever he chooses shall be given him" (Sirach 15: 17). Making choices is integral to human end, temporal and eternal. The human person, made in the image and likeness of God, is equipped with intellect and will to decide the end they desire. Each choice we make carries consequences. In making choices, we have immediate and eternal goals. Our choices are moral in nature and purpose. God created us with the capacity to make good choices that lead to eternal life, but God also gives us the freedom to choose either the path to life and good or the contrary path. God has placed a huge responsibility on us. And we make our choices about what and where we want to be time and time again throughout our lifetimes.
Lent is a liturgical time that the Church offers us to make those choices. In a matter of days, we will begin Lent with the imposition of ashes on our foreheads, indicating our mortality and the choices we have to walk or not walk the path of the cross that leads to a good and holy life. Lent. We have been here before. We have gone through the path of the liturgical circle over and over. If we look back, we can determine whether we made good, life-enhancing choices. Did we? Or, did we discover that we did not take advantage of the sacred season, with all the opportunities it provides for the good of our souls? Do we find ourselves just going through the motions, making little or no sacrifices that engender growth in good and towards life?
Making choices can be cruel. What do I mean? So often, we have to decide between the pleasure or comfort we are accustomed to and a new, difficult path that the Spirit of God will reveal to us. The old, familiar path, even when it hasn't drawn us deeper into the moral good, is always difficult to let go of. We always have the opportunity, especially during the penitential seasons like Lent or Advent, to re-route our path. That is the choice we must make. It can be painful, but we are capable of making that choice because God's grace is sufficient for us. What are the good and life-giving choices we want to make during this holy season of Lent? How can we make this a transformative Lent and avoid the same old routine that has not brought growth to our spiritual life?
We must think about this year's Lent differently. We must remember that we have a God-given potential to choose the good and life. We must be willing to do the hard work of surrendering all to the Holy Spirit, who molds and renews us. The sacrifices and penances the season of Lent offers us abound. We begin with abstinence and fasting on Ash Wednesday. We have a choice to make: either make a big deal of it or fall into our old routine of doing nothing significant to indicate our desire for encounter or intimacy with God. Will the ashes remind us of our mortality and the need to enter into the narrow road that leads to eternal life? Are we going to strive to grow in virtue? Are we going to pray and fast more? Are we going to make a good confession? Are we going to be a moral light and salt in the world? Are we ready to choose to see the Gospel truth and live by its spirit or decide to stick to our old, sometimes unexamined ways, not in conformity with God's will?
Come this Ash Wednesday, let us choose to enter deeply into the spiritual warfare to choose moral good and eternal life by joining Jesus in the desert. Let's commit as much as we can, choosing life and good over death and evil. God promises to give us what we choose, what we seek, what we will, with the help of his grace. What is your choice going to be? life or death, good or evil? You are the one to make that choice. I get to make my choice as well.
Have a spiritually enlightening Lent.
In Christ's love,
Fr. Alayode, OP
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