We have been taught to always have something to fall back on. We have insurance, savings, a nest egg, or an ace in the hole. We avoid ever getting in the position where we would have to depend on God for our next meal.

However, the Lord may be doing something which is almost the opposite of what we're trying to do. He is trying to strip us and leave us with nothing but Him to depend on. For example, when He sent out His apostles on mission, He commanded: "Provide yourselves with neither gold nor silver nor copper in your belts; no traveling bag, no change of shirt, no sandals, no walking staff" (Mt 10:9-10). Paul described one of his missions thus: "We were left to feel like men condemned to death so that we might trust, not in ourselves, but in God Who raises the dead" (2 Cor 1:9).

Lent is intended to be a desert experience (see Mt 4:1). The Lord wants to take food, comfort, and even some support from our lives. He wants us to know that the people and possessions He has put in our lives are not to be used as crutches; rather, they are to be accepted as gifts from Him. He wants us to know that He can love us without any intermediaries. He wants us to be alone with Him and have no help but Him. Let the Lord lead you into the desert of Lent (Hos 2:16; Jer 2:2).

Nihil Obstat:  Reverend Robert L. Hagedorn, July 26, 1997

Imprimatur:  †Most Reverend Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, July 29, 1997