Sunshine and Clouds

As I begin to write today, it is overcast outside. Over the last week or so we have had a large swing in our weather. We went from relatively warm sunny days, to overcast but still a bit warm, to 12-14 inches of snow and bitter cold and finally to what promises to be warm and sunny again! IT has been a roller coaster of a ride!

This difference between between cloudy and sunny days reminds me of our Lenten journey. We travel this world in darkness, the darkness of sin and in reality, the darkness of the absence of God. Society has and continues to make every effort to minimize or even remove the idea of God from itself. Without God we walk in darkness and we struggle to find our way. 

Jesus Christ brings light to this darkness. It is through His Death, Resurrection and Ascension that light blooms anew into the world. Think about that first really sunny and warm day that comes after a long winter. The snow is melting, the birds are singing, we can even smell spring in the air. This is just how our Lenten journey should be. It should be a gradual warming in our lives and our hearts, our lives getting a little bit brighter each and every day that we make the Lenten effort. And this will culminate in the brightest of days, Pascha, and all the joy that the Resurrected Lord brings.

We may struggle each day, with our Lenten efforts, with temptation, with our own frustrations, angers and fears. But if we struggle, if we truly struggle and make the effort to walk the path of Christ, the bright Light of His triumph over death will help us chase away the difficulties, the temptations, the frustrations and the fear. Trust in God.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.   John 1:1-5