Lent is a wonderful season within the church to help up to take a step back... calm down our lives... and truly contemplate God’s love for us. This year for Lent, in order to truly contemplate God in His infinite goodness, I am working on spending more quality time with God whether through prayer, service, or in the Eucharist.
This Lenten season has been truly blessed so far!
The very first weekend of Lent, I was blessed to be able to go on a retreat here in a Honduras called "Pan de Vida,” meaning “Bread of Life.” It was lead by the Missioners of Christ and the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal. God definitely blessed me with a great gift of understanding throughout the retreat. Everything was in Spanish and I actually was able to listen, comprehend, AND take notes in English! I was so excited when I understood the first talk, and all the talks after! Also, I was able to help minister to others on the retreat by being part of the worship band. Singing in Spanish definitely came easier by the grace of God and the help of the rest of the musicians. The retreat started with a beautiful mass said by 4 of the Franciscan Friars here in Honduras.
The overarching theme is the Eucharist, and how God is the center of our lives. To make this point even more evident, Jesus was exposed in the Blessed Sacrament the whole time! (Awesome!) All talks, reflections, and praise and worship music were truly centered around the Eucharist. It was so amazing to have a Christ centered weekend.
One things that I definitely spent a lot of time contemplating during the retreat is God's infinite ability to sustain us. His love for us is unending, and much like a parent loves, cares for, and forgives their child, so does our Heavenly Father. He provides for us our every need if we simple turn to Him. He understands when we have made mistakes and he forgives us through the sacrament of reconciliation. He will take care of us, sustain us, time and time again if we turn to Him and let Him truly be the center and the focus of our lives.
I was blessed to be able to share this retreat with some of my students and co-workers from ICB! It was great to connect with them through such a beautiful encounter with Christ.
This past Friday, I went to "Via Cruz" which is The Stations of the Cross. I was in wonder and awe as we began. In Honduras (and other parts of Central America) you walk around the streets of the town, with Jesus praying the different stations. There are many acolytes, readers, and banner holders. The priest has a microphone that is projected from a truck. It is a huge procession where you sing in between each station. It was awesome to see more people join in the procession as we ventured through the town.
As I walked through the streets with the great procession, I was contemplating the journey of Jesus while carrying his cross and how Mary must have felt. During the 4th station, I was standing directly under the gaze of Jesus. My heart began to crumble as I imagined the pain Mary must have felt as she looked upon her son under such circumstances. Just as I was about to tear up, it began to gently rain. It was in that moment my contemplation gained a new dimension, Mary didn't just tear up, she must have be weeping. Her son! My brother! My Lord! Our God! Being tortured in such a way - oh, the pain Mary must have felt! The pain that I had a glimpse into. Jesus' love for me and the world had never been so explicit!
At the very end of stations, we all returned back to the cathedral for the closing prayers surrounding the Resurrection. I was struck with awe as we approached the Eucharist Chapel. There, in front of our eyes, was our hope, our Lord! As we knelt, praying, it was beautiful to be in the presence of Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament!
Needless to say, my Lenten journey has been full of contemplation. I hope that you take time this Lent to turn to God, and learn and understand His love more fully. He is always with you. Turn to Him, and He will sustain you!
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