- Pray with Christ in the desert to gain His faith
(OSV News photo/Bob Roller, Reuters)
Be explicit about it: Imagine yourself next to Jesus in the desert; or imagine him joining you wherever you pray. Spiritual masters like St. Ignatius of Loyola say we are free to use our imaginations not because it’s helpful to pretend Jesus is with us, but to help our minds acknowledge what is true.
Lord Jesus, give us the faith that will allow us to see your presence, essence and power everywhere in all the things that you made.
- Fast with Jesus Christ in the desert to learn hope
It is the Holy Spirit, the consoler, that leads Jesus into the desert in the Gospel for the first Sunday of Lent. This reveals what real consolation looks like. The Holy Spirit doesn’t console us by telling us that our life here on earth is just fine. He consoles us by telling us that we have a deeper relationship that keeps us rooted and steady as storms rage.
Lord Jesus, as we sit with you in the desert, give us a share in the spiritual hope that only grows as our false, material hopes wane.
- Give alms to grow in love for the suffering Jesus
To become like Jesus, you have to see Christ in others. Mother Teresa, the saint of charity, shared what she called “The Gospel on five fingers”: You. Did. It. To. Me. This was the criteria Jesus the Judge will use at the end of time: “Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me” (Mt 25:40).
Lord Jesus, as we give alms this Lent, help us console you in the people you identify so closely with that in serving them we serve you.
- Pray the Stations of the Cross to see with Jesus’ wisdom
When Jesus Christ sees Pilate on the way of the cross, he sees his dignity and appeals to that. When he sees his mother, he is encouraged by her fidelity. When Simeon is seen by Christ, it changes the trajectory of his life. When Veronica is seen by him, he leaves his image with her.
Lord Jesus, help us enter into the Stations of the Cross deeply so that we see with you and are seen by you.
- Do spiritual reading to think with Christ’s understanding
The gift of understanding is the holy insight that lights up your brain. If a passage of the Bible has ever jumped out at you and convicted you, if a homily’s words have ever cut you to the heart, if you ever felt like you finally “got” what life is all about for one fleeting moment – you have experienced the Holy Spirit’s gift of understanding.
Lord Jesus, fill our minds with your understanding through our relationship with you and those who came before us in the Faith.
- Attend Mass to imbibe Christ’s knowledge
The purpose of life is to know, love and serve God. To know him means to know things about him, but it also means to “have knowledge” of him in the Biblical sense: to unite with the body of Christ. That means that the Catholic Mass’s Liturgy of the Word and Liturgy of the Eucharist are a summing up of one of our whole life’s tasks.
Lord Jesus, give us the gift of receiving you deeply at each Mass, through our ears and on our tongues.
- Give something up so that your heart grows in Christ’s fortitude
Giving something up is a Lenten tradition for a reason. Think of all the things lovers give up to make their beloved first in their lives: their own preferences, their personal time, and the money they would have spent on themselves. Think of all the things parents give up because their children become first in their lives: their days and nights, their travel plans and their future plans. They give them up gladly for the person their heart loves most.
Jesus, love gives us the fortitude to give things up for those we love. Give us the fortitude to give up that thing that most keeps us from you.
- Live Ash Wednesday, Fridays and Good Friday to walk in Christ’s counsel
Think of counsel as the Holy Spirit’s GPS system. It allows you to judge where to go and how to act almost by intuition. This doesn’t happen magically; it happens by building the habit of following God’s will, which is expressed in his church. The precepts of the church are here to help give us that habit: Fast with Jesus as the church asks on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, abstain from meat on Fridays in union with his sacrifice, and more.
Lord Jesus, you gave us your church as a way to train us to walk in your path. Give us the grace to walk in fidelity to your church and to you.
- Pray the Rosary to join Christ in His fear of God and piety
The person who best exemplifies life in Christ is Our Lady, who carried Christ in her womb. In the joyful mysteries of the rosary, she makes Christ the center of her life and brings him to others. In the final glorious mysteries, she is given the awe-inspiring gifts of being welcomed at Christ’s side in heaven as a queen.
Lord Jesus, let me kneel with your mother in awe at your majesty and fold my hands with her in appreciation at your closeness.
- Recommit to your baptism on Easter, ready to become one with Jesus
Spoiler alert: At the end of Lent, you will be renewing your baptismal promises at Easter Mass. It turns out that renewing your baptismal graces is what Lent was about all along.
Lord Jesus, every year I renew my baptismal promises at Easter. This year I want to be more prepared for that moment than ever before.
Kindly give me the graces in Lent that will unite us at Easter.