“Yikes, It’s Holy Week Already”

Originally Posted April 3, 2023

It’s Holy Week… how’s everyone doing with their Lenten practices … having a good Lent? A good friend of mine often says that “God designs his Lent and it usually contains a number of surprises… unplanned interruptions.” Well my friend had unplanned Heart Surgery during this Lent, so it looks like his theory is gaining more credence. I’m sure he will have much to say about what God did during Lent this year…. much of it unexpected. If God designs your Lent, then good things are going to happen. 

I can tend to be an “ a scoreboard watcher”… instead of playing the game with my head down, I can tend to be looking at the scoreboard. When that happens, I don’t do very well. Sure we need to periodically see how things are going, but generally we should be at work. And our work is to love God and our neighbor. It’s wonderful to have a nice prayer time and add some extra devotions, but am I loving God and my neighbor? Is their evidence of the Holy Spirit’s action in my life? 

So Dave what about your  Lent? It’s Holy Week and there’s not much  time to make course corrections,  so how are you doing ? Has this been a great Lent, a poor Lent, a mediocre Lent? Hmmmmmm. On one hand my fasting has been intermittent, my extra prayers have been up and down… I would have to go with a solid “C minus” for my 2023 Lent. But am I looking at the Lent I planned or the one the Lord planned? Hmmmmmm. 

The Lord thru a few curve balls at me during Lent. On the normal side, I had a number of doctor appointments, got a molar extracted, and then my brother unexpectedly got sick and died. A lot of my Lent was spent trying to help him from 2,000 miles away…… and then the aftermath of planning a funeral mass, working with lawyers, going thru some of his personal items that were shipped to me, conversations with my brother and sister. I’m a bit discombobulated. There’s evidence that the Lord has been at work in all of this, but I’m clearly out of my comfort zone. 

So, here it is Holy Week and my head hasn’t stopped spinning….. the holiest week of the year and I’m not very focused. So, now what? Well, it shows that I’m not in control and I can’t manage everything. It shows that I need the Lord to once again save me. So, how’s my Lent going? Left to me, it’s a C or D, but “my hope is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth”. Let’s trust our savior to work thinks out for us. The Lord can do wonders in this holiest of weeks. We have a great God who loves us perfectly. And that is very good news.