1st Sunday of Lent Year A: Reflection by Fr. Julian O Ekeh

Theme: 40 DAYS: A TIME FOR SPIRITUAL FORTIFICATION

(Matthew 4:1–11)

With the Ash Wednesday over, we have entered the Holy Season of Lent. This first Sunday, we are shown Jesus moving into the desert, driven by the spirit, and there He fasted, prayed, and was tempted. He did this to receive fortification for what He has to offer to the world and to His heavenly Father, the sacrifice of His life. Thus He fasted, prayed, and got disposed for the eternal almsgiving. These are the central messages of the Lenten season.

Forty and fortification sound good. Oh come along let us make these forty days journey with the Lord in the spirit of mortification and prayer. May we get fortified to combat our faulty habits this holy period.

WHAT HAS FORTY DAYS TO DO WITH LENT?

The word “Lent” is derived from the Latin Quadragesima, which means forty days, that starts from the Ash Wednesday and ends on Holy Thursday evening. Christians this period commemorate in a very special way the forty days Jesus Christ fasted and was tempted in the desert. Forty is indeed a symbolic number, a number of spiritual importance. It appeared severally in the Jewish and also Greek testaments of the Bible: It rained 40 days and nights during the flood( Genesis 7:4) Moses’ encounter with God on the mountain lasted for 40 days( Exodus 24:18), It took the Israelites 40 years to wander in the desert traveling to the promised land( Numbers 14:33), for 40 days and nights Elijah walked to Horeb (I kings 19:8), Jonah’s prophecy to the people of Nineveh warned that it will take 40 days for Nineveh to be destroyed, and for these days they prayed, fasted and repented (Jonah 3:4–6).

Jesus today is in the desert, inviting us to come and get fortified spiritually through prayers these forty days to dismantle everything that is faulty in us.

DID JESUS NEED THE FORTIFICATION?

It is for our sake that Jesus entered the wilderness. If He who is God needed spiritual empowerment, what about us? We are weak, we need strength from above, we are surrounded by trials and temptations, and as such, we need to pray and fast to overcome the temptations of this life. Jesus needs us to be fortified for the battles ahead. Let us accept the weapons that Christ offers us in the face of the various crises in our world today.

WHAT IS THE FORTIFICATIONS ABOUT?

Jesus shows us what to use this period to fight against. We’ve got to fight against inordinate desires for food, drink power, pleasure, and false worship. We should be fortified against ourselves, our world, and the devil. What are the things luring you away from living a fulfilled life in the spirit? Accept the fortification from the spirit of God. Move into the desert with Jesus. It is not by bread alone that man shall live. It is not just by wealth nor by throwing ourselves down from the dignified positions we occupy as children of God. It is by being strong in the spirit that we shall overcome life challenges like Jesus Christ and be able to rebuke every tempter with the following words of Christ: Be gone!

Let us fortify our willpower to always say yes to God and no to the enemies of God. Let us fortify ourselves by the Spirit of God to flee from the forces trying to pull us down spiritually. Let us sharpen our prayer life by praying more devotedly. Let us sharpen our sacramental life by confession and getting reconciled with the Lord. Let us receive the Holy Eucharist regularly in the state of grace. Let us close all doors through which vices come in, through which the devil tries to settle in our homes, through which negative energies try to take the better part of us. Let us be fortified with the weapon of charity and Christ’s brand of love. Let us get fortified by sanctifying our activities on the social media, our recreation and relationships with people.

Be fortified these forty days.

Never be a tempter

May you not be overcome by any temptation.

May the angels of God come to your aid in times of trials. May this Lenten season be a gracious moment for you.

May God bless His word in our hearts.

LET US PRAY

We thank You, Lord, for another opportunity to take part in the Lenten observance; of the suffering and death of Christ. Bless our resolve to follow You in this spiritual exercise. May it bear fruits of righteousness, joy, and peace. Touch us that we may repent and remain close to You in holiness through Christ our Lord. Amen

Happy Sunday (First Sunday of Lent, Yr A)

Rev Fr Julian O Ekeh