Wednesday, February 6, 2008

LENTEN DEVOTION FOR WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 6

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. (Luke 12:34)

Jesus - Priceless Treasure!

The Lenten season is upon us, reminding us to take this special time to reflect upon the life, the ministry, and the presence of Christ in our lives. Just as Advent asks us to prepare for and anticipate the coming of Christ, the child, into our world, so Lent now offers us the particular opportunity to focus our thoughts upon the man - the Son of God and one with the Creator. We take this time to consider the life of Jesus in His teachings, the challenges and struggles He faced, His courageous witness to injustice, the outreach He made to the unloved, and most of all - the love from God that Jesus bestowed on all humankind.

During these weeks of Lent, we journey with Christ in His ministry. We walk with Him and His disciples as they gather in village and town; we listen to His teaching and the lessons of His parables; we follow behind Him with palms as people celebrate His coming; we hear His words of comfort at the table; we wait and sorrow with Him at Gethsemane; and we stumble the streets of Jerusalem with Him as He goes to the cross. There we are overwhelmed by His sacrifice and loving grace in the face of unbearable agony. We witness His surrender, and our hearts are broken.

Yet, come the morning light and miraculously with joy, the sorrow of that previous day and the emptiness of the tomb disappear, and each one of us, the world, and humankind is forever and eternally changed. Thanks be to God for this gift, this priceless treasure.

O Lord, not only are we offered eternity in your presence, but we are incredibly blessed by Your presence as You journey beside us. How grateful we are that, in spite of our neglect, you are always lovingly there. Amen.

Swid Kirchhofer

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