The Root of Lent is Love

Repent and believe in the Gospel.  Mark 1:15
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​Welcome to Lent!  I feel embarrassingly blessed as we head into this season of penance and sacrifice because as I type, it’s late Tuesday night and I’m joyfully taking my shift with my teeny brand-new granddaughter Paisley.  I’m truly steeped in the opposite of penance and sacrifice…I’m actually knee deep in blissful happiness as I study tiny toes and lips and fingers.  I suppose it’s all a great reminder that as we begin Lent, we should be mindful that the root of it all is love.  We use this season to pull away from ourselves and our desires for comfort and convenience in order to make room for Jesus.  The end result of a Lent well lived is more focus on HIM and less focus on me.
One of the great ways we can love Jesus more deeply is to recognize his presence in our days. Perhaps that’s the best way to spend our Lenten days…looking for him; searching for the holy moments that flood our days.  Those moments are so easy to find as I snuggle up with this ten-pound bundle of new life but I wonder about the days ahead when things are challenging and dreary and frustrating…Lent is a great time to thank him for all those times and remember he’s there too. 
Love requires sacrifice…always!  As you make your way through Ash Wednesday 2025, ask Jesus for the grace to make this the Lent that your sacrifices and penances will be offered with such great love you won’t want Lent to end.  It won’t be easy, but it will be worth it and the joy of Easter will be overwhelming.  Today is the day to ask the question, “Do I want to be the same on Easter Sunday as I am on Ash Wednesday?” 
 
A Seed To Plant:  How can you grow in love this Lenten season?
Blessings on your day