The Audacity of the Devil.

Luke 4:1-13

Today's Gospel recalls the story of Jesus' temptation by the Devil. If you are unfamiliar with the story, it goes a little something like this. . .

Jesus spends 40 days in the desert to offer penance and prayer to His Father. (This act alone should be enough to affirm the efficacy of prayer and penance-- but, I will leave this to another post.) At the end of these 40 days, Jesus was hungry, weak and tired. No doubt about that. This is when the Devil struck.

The Devil tempts Jesus three times. First, the Devil goats Jesus to turn stone to bread. Second, the Devil offers Jesus all the kingdoms of the Earth. Third, he dares Jesus to jump from the parapet of the temple to tempt God to save Him.

There is logic in the madness.

You see-- the Devil strikes when we are weak. The Devil tries first to tempt Jesus through his physical senses. Use the unnatural to satisfy a physical need. Then, the Devil tries to tempt Jesus through pride. Use the unnatural to satisfy a spiritual need. Finally, the Devil tries to tempt Jesus through a perversion of His relationship with God. This takes the most audacity. But ultimately, the Devil fails.

Think about all the ways little and large-- physical and spiritual-- that we are tempted everyday. With most of us, the Devil gets off easy. We succumb without much fight. But, perhaps you can recall an instance when you were tempted in a way that perverted your very relationship with your Creator? Think of the audacity of that. Did you succumb?

We all fail. But, rest assured that there are those praying that we get up, brush ourselves off and understand that even the best of us are tempted. . . and Jesus proves that it doesn't matter if we fail. There is someone who has won.

The Meaning of the Fast

Matthew 9:14-15

Yes, Thursday's cross still has me off a day. But, today is the day to get back on track. Recall from yesterday's post the inconvenience of losing Internet access. But, I think there is a lesson here.

Friday (yesterday) was the first Friday of the Season of Lent (more about this over the next 40 some days of posts...). There I was-- rushing about my busy day. Truth be told, I was pretty distracted and a little anxious and stressed out. Not unlike days that you have had, I'm sure.

I was invited by some colleagues to join them for a casual lunch out of the office. We find ourselves at a little pub a few blocks away. We are having an enjoyable conversation (despite dozens of televisions fixated on the Tiger Wood's press conference). We order, eat, talk and laugh some more, and then we leave.

The problem is that in my stress and distraction, I completely forgot my obligation to fast and abstain. Not six steps out of the front door of the pub, I realized it. Then the cherry-on-the-top: the "Oh, _ _ _t." I admitted my sin. One of my two colleagues said she had noticed when I ordered and had contemplated kicking me under the table-- the whole thing was kind a disaster. But let me tell you what I learned:

God gives us penances as a gift and as a tool.

The day's Gospel reading tells the story of when Jesus was asked why His disciples do not fast. Jesus' response is so very simple. He uses a wedding analogy and asks the question: "Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them?" What does this mean? Well, after my first Lenten blunder, I completely understand.

You see, God gives us the discipline of fasting to help us to feel hunger. Why? It helps us to focus our mind. It is a "rumble in the tummy" reminder. Everything we have and everything we are comes from God.

I was so caught up in my day that I forgot. The irony is that I really needed to fast on Friday. I needed God in the midst of my busy and stressful day. Intellectually, I knew this. But to really grasp this, I needed to feel this.

The disciples did not fast when they were with Jesus because His presence was already there. In my next fast, the door will be open for Our Lord to come on over and stay awhile. He is the friend I need on those busy, stressful days.

Who's Driving Us Crazy?

James 1:12-18

In today's reading from the Letter of James, we learn yet another one of the important secrets of life. Who is it that is driving us crazy?

James instructs us to make no mistake-- it is NOT God who tempts us. This is because God is not subject to evil. If you can wrap your head around it-- God is goodness, itself.

So, who is driving us crazy?

On any given day, I am sure that it would be easy to fill in the blank. My vote is for Satan. But, that is not exactly right, either. What James wants us to know is something profound-- something that is frightening to admit out loud.

We are tempted (and in my parlance--driven crazy) when we are lured and enticed by our own desire. So, the person driving us crazy is OUR SELF.

God gave us all a dangerous and powerful gift. He gave us our will. But, in His loving wisdom, he also gave us His Word. Through His Word, if we listen, we have everything we need to harness our will and calm the crazies.

Why Do We Suffer?

James 1:1-11

Today's reading comes from the Letter of James. If you don't know, the Letter of James is a small letter sandwiched in between the Letter to the Hebrews and First Peter, if you care to check it out. Of all the books of the Bible (save the Gospels, themselves), I love the Letter of James. I love it for its simplicity, and I love it for the wealth of answers to some of life's most challenging questions.

One of the important questions answered in this passage is-- why do we suffer?

We learn from this passage from James that we suffer because in suffering we are tested. A test of how we perceive a situation. A test of how we react to a situation. A test of how we survive a situation.

I am sure that I speak for many of us when I say that some of my tests have been whoppers. Truth be told, I have probably failed more of them than I have passed. But (to use a school analogy), in this life, the grades do not matter. What matters is that we (1) come to class, (2) pay attention to the teacher, and (3) keep doing our homework.

This means that in life-- when your car breaks down, you don't lose your cool and scream at your family. This means that when your wife gets sick, you don't curse God. This means that when someone in your life fails you, you don't write them off as unimportant. Just think of all of the many ways that we suffer and are tested everyday.

Thank God for the Suffering.

Now, thank God because if we were not given these challenges (as unpleasant and difficult as they sometimes are) we would never have the opportunity to challenge our faith. Why would want to challenge our faith, you ask? Two good reasons: (1) to know that we have some, and (2) because a tested faith produces perseverance and makes us stronger.

Think about this. For most of us, when do we call God the loudest? We call on Him when we are in trouble. Truth is, for most of us, it is easy to get caught up in the world and our daily life and lose sight of what is even more real-- but harder to see.

Our life here is a journey with a series of tests. Each test moves us closer or farther away from God-- we chose. What the Letter of James tells us to do is simple: ask God for Wisdom and Faith because there is redemptive power in suffering.