I don't think I have ever used my GPS on a trip and not heard the system announce "recalculating." And usually I hear it multiple times. For any number of reasons it's just hard to consistently stay on corse and follow each and every direction. Many times the reasons are my fault, but sometimes it's just a matter of "life" just not working out as planned (such as when there is no road where the GPS says we are suppose to turn right). What I realized last night (Ash Wednesday) is that this is true for both traveling down the highway...and traveling through life. And as our pastor pointed out, what an incredible metaphor for Lent.
Lent is a time for us to reflect on and be transformed and renewed by Christ's Sacrifice and God's Love. It is a time for us to humble ourselves, to remember our weakness, to acknolwedge our faults. And inevitably, if we are honest and exhaustive in this exercise, we come to realize that we are not wholly where we need to be. For some of us...or maybe it is better to say that at some point in all our lives...we are significantly off course. For others...and at other points in our lives...maybe we have just drifted off the road a bit or slowed down too much or spent too much time in the rest area.
But regardless of the degree, most of us are off course...and so Lent is a time for recalculating. It's a time to assess where we are and spend maybe a little time thinking about how we got here. But most importantly, I think, Lent is a time for figuring out how to get back to where we need, and want, to be.
Sometimes we have to figure out where exactly that is. Sometimes we just know...and maybe have known for awhile. But regardless, the broader method is the same. We have to identify where we are, we have to decide where we want to go, we have to map out a plan for how to get there, and then lastly we have to resolve to follow that plan. Maybe we need to start (or re-start) a daily prayer time. Maybe it's saying the rosary on a weekly basis. Maybe it's reading the Bible more frequently. Maybe it's going on a retreat. Maybe it's reading an inspirational (and/or very practical) book by a saint. Or maybe it is a combination of all these things. Each person's path is going to be unique because God has a unique plan for each of us...and He is dying to show us what it is. Some of us already see it (and we are just not there yet). Some of us know that we saw it at some point in our life, but that seems so long ago. And some of us have never really seen it at all. But again...that is what Lent is for. This is our opportunity. All we have to do is say yes to God's Positioning System (GPS!) and He will recalculate our lives. We may have to go down some unfamiliar roads...we may have to travel through the night...but if we humble oursleves and diligently follow His directions...we'll get back on course...His course...and come Easter morning...the Son will rise...and we will find we have Life...and have it abundantly (John 10:10)!
