“Y'all come back now, ya hear?”

Galatians 2:20 by Sara Bergh

Unlike other seasons in the Church Calendar, Lent begins with an invitation.  The invitation is read every Ash Wednesday, and for brevity I published in FB a shortened version which goes like this,

Dear People of God: The first Christians observed with great devotion the days of our Lord's passion and resurrection.  Thereby, the whole community was put in mind of the message of pardon and absolution set forth in the Gospel of our Savior, and of the need which all Christians continually have to renew their repentance and faith.

I invite you, therefore, in the name of the Church, to the observance of a holy Lent, by self-examination and repentance; by prayer, fasting, and self-denial; and by reading and meditating on God's holy Word.

And, although it is worded as an invitation from the Church, in fact Lent it is God’s very own invitation to draw near to the Divine presence. 

Not to approach God in the sense of “come hither” to receive a dressing down or even a well-deserved smack, but with the same sentiment which moved the prodigal’s father to go out to meet his long-lost son and embracing and welcoming him back home.

In fact, long before the Advent of Christ, Isaiah’s call was a reflection of God’s forgiving heart, “The ungodly need to abandon their lifestyle and sinful people their plans. They should return to the LORD, and he will show mercy to them, and to their God, for he will freely forgive them,” (Isaiah 55:7).

So, the theme of coming closer to God or even in allowing God to come closer to our lives is always at the heart of Lent. 

Over this Lent Season, we will embark together in a sacred journey exploring the implication of God calling us back to Him, and which disciplines may help us to further develop into what God has in mind for us.

Now, if I know a thing or two about human nature in general and my own soul in particular, such invitation makes sense only if I were to acknowledge that in general, almost as certain as the pull of gravity, I tend to move away from God rather than come closer to the Divine.  For, let’s face it, who doesn’t love to do his or her own thing at his or her own time, right?

So, in a few words, it could be rightly said that Lent is about change.  Not change for the sake of change but change for the good.

When John appeared in scene just before Jesus, at the heart of his message was a call to repent.  Now, from the very beginning let me stress that “repentance” in the Bible is way more than feeling bad about something.  Feeling bad is a good start.  In the Bible, repentance includes a turning around, a changing of heart and mind, in a nutshell, “conversion.”

Now “Conversion” is not leaving the Baptist church and becoming an Episcopalian, or leaving an alien faith and becoming a Christian, like St Paul commended the Thessalonians for doing, (Paul wrote to the Thessalonians that they turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God, 1 Thessalonians 1:9).

In the Bible, the word most usually translated as “repentance” is “Metanoia” and at its core, it is a word borrowed from the Roman military, meaning “About Face!” 

So, when John and Jesus began to preach their message, their call was a call to conversion.  First it was calling people to stop doing whatever they were doing and then to listen to what either John or Jesus had to say.  And then, to follow it through with the corresponding change of direction.

When asked about the nitty-gritty of conversion, John told the crowds, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.”  To the tax collectors, John told them “Collect no more taxes than the government requires.”  And to the soldiers he said, “Do violence to no one; don’t make cheating your way of life; and learn to live within your means.”

So, what it is remarkable is that John’s message to conversion was not about the nut and bolts of religious life.  But it was squarely centered on one’s relationship with his or her neighbors and with society at large. 

In today’s gospel, we are told of our Lord’s temptation.  When invited to take an easy out from the mission his Father entrusted him, – even when having been dealt the best hand to get out of the jam – Jesus turned his back to the chance and kept his heart focused on God.

For temptation is nothing more than a good theological word to cover up what temptation in fact is, “A sugar coat to our own vanity and self-serving mind-set.”  And for sure, temptation often arrives as a Bible-enriched sugar coating! 

So, Lent is not so much as giving up chocolate or eating more broccoli, but it is more about turning away from such things that even us may eventually admit being worthless and fleeting fades.  

In other words, conversion is leaving behind the art of picking up Bible verses justifying what we really want to do and stopping playing one-upmanship games with God, with our neighbors, and even with ourselves.

In our Episcopal traditional understanding, conversion is more than responding to an altar call, once in a lifetime, or something that it is undertake every Lent.  God’s call to conversion is constant if for no other reason that we, like a swinging door, tend to return to our own place of rest.

So, as we embark on this sacred journey, let us embrace the disciplines that draw us closer to God.  Let us remember that Lent is not merely a time for giving up, but a time for giving in – even when we believe that we know better than God.  It is also a season to reflect on our spiritual lives and cultivating habits that will foster growth and transformation.

May this Lenten season be an opportunity to deepen your relationship with God and to experience the grace and mercy that is ever-present in your life.  Let us walk together in faith, supporting one another as we seek to embody the love and compassion that Christ has shown us – Time and again.

Now, as you begin this Lenten Journey:

Walk in boldness, as a beloved child of God,

Walk in peace, under the shelter of the Most High,

And walk in faith, knowing God’s Spirit will be with you through bumps, delays, and detours.  Amen.

Fr. Gustavo