Grace & Efren

“Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?”

Matthew 20:22

This is one of the few times in the Gospel were Jesus was talking behind code a little bit. He was essentially saying “I’m about to fulfill my purpose, and it’s not going to be easy. Can you do what I’m about to do?”

It’s a reminder for me that nothing good ever comes without sacrifice, hard work or dedication.  I’ve observed that if good things do somehow come in an easy manner, they’re easily taken for granted and easily lost.

So grind it out baby. Do work. This happiness thing is a slow, steady process not some lottery winning.

It’s interesting that during Lent, it seems that we get days off. Sundays are those days where we don’t have to fast and abstain. Now some would take this day and simply pig out and gorge on whatever they’ve been fasting for 6 days. But I think, God in His goodness has a greater purpose for it.

Simply put, I think Sunday is that day where I can have whatever I want, but being more mindful that I’m in the presence of God. Do I gorge and indulge after 6 days of fasting and abstaining, or can these 6 days show that I have self-control in front of God when it comes to these things.

A huge point of fasting, is really detaching ourselves from worldly things in order to fill that space with God. Sunday puts us face to face with these worldly things, and we’re given a chance to show God one of two things:

1) That these things we fast somehow have a control over us

2) We have control over these things

So enjoy your Sunday! Not because you don’t have to fast, but because God is present and you have a chance to show Him you’ve got a handle on things.

My last entry sparked what I’ll be writing typing about for this one, and it was further fueled by  a reflection from another blogging veteran who has taken the Lenten Challenge alongside me. It’s been 7 consecutive days (8 with a day of rest) and this Lenten reflection challenge has been nothing less than enriching. Taking the time to think, pray, analyze and finally output how God is leading my thoughts has been a consistent exercise of my spiritual mojo. And what’s better  is that I have a whole bunch of other bloggers pushing me further with their own commitment for this challenge, and more so with their thoughts and reflections.

So excited by all of this, it got me wondering and asking “Where does this all go? Why are we doing this in the first place?”

I think this whole challenge is bringing me back to where He makes all things new, which is the Cross.

The Cross to me really represents (among other things) a place of God’s honesty. Jesus at the conclusion of His human life on earth held nothing back to us. His time on earth brought equilibrium to what was happening during those times. He flipped everything onto it’s head, and if anyone was paying attention, it made everyone honest. He made everyone question themselves. He uplifted the lowly and forgotten and humbled those who thought they were more than what they really were. He put everyone around Him on even ground when it came to God’s love.

His presence, words and miracles were able to do all of that, but it was the final act where God showed us His most honest self. After being beaten and tortured, He still carried the cross to where he would be put humiliatingly on display for all to see. Scarred, bloodied, wounded and naked. There really was nothing left to hide here.  This was as honest as Jesus was going to get.

Jesus being both fully God and fully human, he showed us his weakness through this act. I mean, being God and being human is like comparing the strength of steel to the strength of a piece of paper. Jesus showed us the weakest part of Him. But… if it wasn’t for this weakness, He never would have fulfilled His purpose. Jesus could not have shown us How to love, and God the Father could not show us the lengths He would go to know that we are loved.

Maybe you’ve heard it all before about God using our weakness to achieve His plan in our lives, and probably in the lives of others. But it all starts with honesty. Accepting who I am, and who I’m not. Admitting my faults and flaws. Coming to terms with my own pain that I inflict on myself or inflicted on me by others. I need to create an equilibrium of how I view myself. When that’s established, then I’m on even ground to really start living.

I think honesty is that place where my true self can CROSS paths with God’s grace. Who knows what can happen from there, but I’m sure it will be nothing less than a purposeful life.

Teach me your way, O Lord, that I may walk in your truth.

Psalm 86:11

I think the hard part of following God, or trying to “walk in truth,” is that I really don’t want to follow. At least that’s what my actions say sometimes. Truth be told, I chose this path to follow God with my own free will (what a great gift by the way). But for the most part I don’t get to dictate where the path travels through. I really only have control of  3 main things.

1. To stay on the path or not stay on the path.
2. How I react when this path gets challenging.
3. The pace I choose to go.

So essentially I choose to walk the path. I choose to keep going when it begins to hurt (and hurt it will), and I choose to move forward.

Maybe through these things, I’m learning bit by bit how to walk in that truth stated in the passage. By choosing to be on the path, I learn how to be decisive, and deliberate with my faith. By pushing through adversity, I learn humility, patience, forgiveness and wisdom (just to name a few). By constantly moving forward, I learn faithfulness and discipline.

I get it now. In order to be taught His way, we have to walk in His Truth. It’s not something you do in some special order, but it’s one and the same. There really isn’t any prerequisite to walk in His Truth; if anything we just have to take the first step, and try to gain momentum.

It’s funny how Lent seems almost like New Year’s. If I’ve been slacking with my spiritual life, LENT comes around and somehow motivates me to do better, and to think of new resolutions to try and keep.

It’s definitely a bittersweet experience. Bitter because I realize how much I’ve slacked in my commitment. Sweet because I realize again (maybe with more gravity because it’s LENT) that God never lacks in His commitment to me. Or you for that matter.

Year in, and year out Lent is that obvious and almost obtrusive reminder. Maybe for those who throughout the entire year haven’t put forth that effort in their faith life, LENT is that time where God says loudly “RESET. Let’s try again my friend.” For those who are a little more “deliberate” with their faith life, it’s God saying “Spring Cleaning my friend, I’ve got more to show you.”

To all those who have decided this year to take LENT a bit more seriously, I’m sure your 40 days will turn into 365. And hopefully God doesn’t have to be so obvious, because you’re paying attention.

Choose life, then, that you and your descendants may live…

Deutronomy 30:19

Q: What’s the secret to life?
A: Living.

It’s funny how the answer is already indicated in the question. I personally think it’s that simple. Just choose to live, just choose life. What does that entail exactly? It’s tough to say, especially in today’s society, with so many answers, and so many opinions. But for myself, it’s trying to live my life by the immeasurables.

Live by kicking butt in the things that people can’t really see, but yet are directly affected by it. Those to me are the immeasurables. For example: compassion, forgiveness, excellence in everything you do, self-esteem, faith… the list can really go on. There really is no solid measuring unit classified for any of these things. But what I do know, is that when any of these things are in abundance, life is more… well… livable. Not just for me but for those around me.

So live. Just live. The universe could be that much better.

FOREWORD:
In an effort to utilize my time more productively for Lent 2011, I’ve decided to post a reflection a day, no matter how short. So this is entry Number 1. Wish me luck. Or better yet, say a prayer for me!

“Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel”

That’s what is being said, as they put the cross of ashes on your forehead. Normally, something like this doesn’t hit at the core of me. I think in my journey as a Catholic, and as a Catholic Leader in my job, I tend to become attracted to fancy phrases, memorable metaphors and relatable stories to get my spiritual mind going. But for some reason this year, this very plain, straightforward phrase struck a chord, and it’s exactly what I needed. No fuss, no muss.

I think when I break down my own spiritual journey to it’s very basic (and beautiful) compound it should just be what I quoted above. I guess to paraphrase it in a way that’s easy for me to understand even more is:

Just do what you say you believe.

My Lenten journey this year is all about re-aligning, tweaking and re-calibrating what I say I believe and what I actually do. Sometimes those can be two totally different things.

Hopefully after ye 40 days of Lent (46 if you count Sundays!), I’ll be a more basic person. No fuss, no muss.