Freedom in Lent - Day 9

The temptations that Jesus experienced during his time in the wilderness was not to work out if Jesus was the Son of God, but what kind of Son of God he would be. Would he use who he was for his own benefit, or for the benefit of others?

During Lent we are invited back into these stories to look again with fresh eyes. The season of Lent invites us to step aside, to take time in the hustle and bustle of everyday life, to reflect and to ask ourselves some deep, soulful questions. Who am I really? What kind of follower of Jesus am I? What kind of choices can I make to reflect that? Paul’s letter to the Galatians speaks of justification by faith which frees us to love others. It frees us from the burden of earning our standing with God. It frees us from being fixated on our status and deeds. And it liberates us to love others, to give attention to their needs.

During this Lententide, may it be a time in which we can ask ourselves some deep questions, freed from the many voices that clamour to give us a pre-packaged, one size-fits-all answers, and to hear the still, small voice of God declaring us to be beloved children of God.

For you were called to freedom, siblings, only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become enslaved to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another.

                                                                                       Galatians 3.13-15