Aridity again is the norm. The Lord has seemingly pulled away.
It was in the desert that Jesus was tested in Matthew 4:1-11. 40 days without food or water, without the comforts of home and His family.
A time where He was seemingly alone. It would have been a glimpse into the darkness, rejection, and abandonment that He experienced on the Cross, "My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?" (Matthew 27:46).
It would have been a time where He would have to struggle with the aches and pains of His body and the hunger, thirst, heat, burning air, and freezing nights.
The desert is a time where we stand utterly alone and naked before ourselves and God the Father. It is the Dark Night of St. John of the Cross. It is a time for the Father to cleanse us and draw us nearer to His heart.
And, it is a challenge to remain focused in eye, mind, and spirit on Jesus Christ and His Cross. For, it is now, in the desert, where one really discovers one's weaknesses and the reality of the Cross that we carry.
Pax vobis,
J.E.
Update: Word from Adoration.
2 comments:
A voice cries out: "In the desert, prepare the way of the Lord."
I've always read this as "a voice cries out in the desert":
But this year the above alternative seems to make much more sense to me. Maybe you're feeling the same thing?
Peace,
Mark
Mark,
That is very much the same thing. I find that every year during Advent that I am placed in the desert.
The sense that I have come to because of this annual experience, is that the Father is guiding me to remove anything and everything that would interfere with the coming of His Son. The challenge is to make sure that my heart is a warm and welcoming place for the Child Jesus, despite the discomfort that I am experiencing in the desert.
My heart, the Inn, will it be open and hospitable to Our Lady, St. Joseph and eventually our Lord?
Thank you for the comment!
Pax vobis,
John
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