This Lenten season begins on Ash Wednesday, February 17.  For six weeks out of the year it is a time to reflect on our lives and our time to walk into the desert. It is also an opportunity to take time to remember and celebrate those things that we have done well to serve the Lord. It is also a time to repent for those things that we have done to hurt our relationships with each other, God and even  ourselves.

With our busy lives, it is hard to remember to take time to stop, to rest, to spend time with God. But it is necessary for our lives will become unhealthy and off center. Our soul yearns for something. The less time we spend with the Lord the more painful that "something" or hunger will become.
 
That hunger deep inside of ourselves can cause us to look for satisfaction in the wrong places. It can cause us to hold on to past hurts and past guilt. It's easy to look for answers in food, prestige, revenge, wealth, drugs, alcohol and many other distractions -  but only God can fill that void within.
 
What are you going to do this lent to spend time with your God?
At baptism, we are called to God to join in a personal journey and a communal journey of faith. A faith that challenges us to let go of those values of our culture or society that are not of God. We have a faith and hope that our God will mold us into His likeness and image. We need more than just Sunday morning together in order for His work to be done in our lives. To make this Lenten journey together why not consider participating in one of our parish lenten reflections.
 

Praying through Lent with the Gifts of the Holy Spirit
As a practical exercise this year for Lent, each of us is invited to reflect on one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit during each of the seven weeks of Lent. For the week from Ash Wednesday through Saturday, our focus is on the gift of WISDOM.

As we begin the season of Lent, let us open and use the gift of Wisdom. What does it mean to be wise? The Holy Spirit gives us the gift of Wisdom so we might see things through God’s eyes. The wise person knows that the struggle of Good Friday is followed by the joy of Easter Sunday. Wisdom enables us to see our own sufferings as part of God’s loving plan for us.

     Holy Spirit, allow me to use the gift of Wisdom so that during this week especially, I might look at my troubles and find you are present with me in the midst of them.

(Reprinted with permission of  St. Anthony Messenger Press, 28 W. Liberty St., Cincinnati, OH 45202. 800-488-0488. All rights reserved.)

For the week that begins with the Second Sunday of Lent, our focus is on the gift of RIGHT JUDGMENT.

From the moment we wake up each day, we make countless decisions. When we use Right Judgment, we can base our decisions on God’s advice and to choose the path God wants us to take.
The gift of Right Judgment (also referred to as Counsel) helps us avoid making decisions that are not based on God. It helps us decide the things we are to say and the deeds we are to do that do not
tear others down, but rather the ones that help build the kingdom here on earth.

     Holy Spirit, help me to listen to my gift of Right Judgment. Allow me to better hear your divine counsel that will enable me to live this week in particular as a true disciple of the Lord.

(Reprinted with permission of St. Anthony Messenger Press, 28 W. Liberty St., Cincinnati,
OH 45202. 800-488-0488. www.americancatholic.org. All rights reserved.)
 

For the week that begins with the First Sunday of Lent, our focus is on the gift of UNDERSTANDING.

To Understand is to see through the eyes of others. We come to appreciate another when we come to truly know them. God has given us a manual to better know and learn about our Lord’s plan – it is the Bible. Prayerful reading and reflecting on the words of Scripture help us to understand God’s presence in our lives. As St. Francis of Assisi hoped for, “Lord, grant that I may not so much seek to be
understood, as to understand.”

     Holy Spirit, help me to develop my gift of Understanding.Allow the inspired words of the Bible to be revealed to me so I might recognize and realize all the many ways you are calling to me this week.

(Reprinted with permission of St. Anthony Messenger Press, 28 W. Liberty St., Cincinnati, OH 45202. 800-488-0488. All rights reserved.)
 

For the week that begins with the Third Sunday of Lent, our focus is on the gift of COURAGE.
Courage is the gift that enables us to overcome our fears and face any dangers with confidence. Sometimes we are afraid in the midst of uncertainty and anxiety because we are depending on our own resources and our own strength.
      The gift of Courage (also referred to as fortitude) enables us to see where our true strength comes from – it is gifted to us from the Spirit. Yet how often do we overlook or ignore the Spirit and try to rely solely on our human frailty rather than utilizing divine courage?
Holy Spirit, the courage you generously bestow upon me, enables me to persevere in situations when I otherwise would have given up. Allow me to continue to use this gift to boldly proclaim and model my faith.