Fourth Sunday of Lent
[Brian] (on Ash Wednesday): Whoa, who are you?
[Future Brian]: I’m you! I’m Future Brian. I just came from the 4th Sunday of Lent this year. Nice shirt, by the way.
[Brian]: Thanks! Wait, so you’re from the 4th Sunday of Lent? You must be really holy by now! I have this amazing Lent planned for myself this year. I’m giving up coffee, not eating between meals, listening to 3 Catholic podcasts, giving to the poor, exercising every day, spending extra time praying in Church, it’s going to be the BEST LENT I’VE EVER HAD!
[Future Brian]: Yeah…about that. I’m not supposed to say too much about the future, but let’s just say you’re going to need the caffeine.
[Brian]: What, why?
[Future Brian]: Well you know how you have a 2 month old baby at home?
[Brian]: Yeah of course…
[Future Brian]: Well she doesn’t know it’s Lent. In fact I think she thinks it’s Advent – she must have read the Scripture passage about being “watchful and alert” because she won’t be sleeping any time soon.
[Brian]: Wow okay…but how about the exercising? It’s not exactly my favorite thing, so it’s a great penance! I’ve got the boxing gloves out, and the jump rope ready to go.
[Future Brian]: Oh right, your knee decided it wasn’t doing that this year.
[Brian]: Well at least I’m getting all these podcasts in!
[Future Brian]: Yeah, that will go pretty well but I hope you’re not planning on working on pride and humility this year because you’re going to do a lot of “look at me I’m all caught up.” See really what I came back to say was this, “Don’t make this Lent all about you. Make it about God.”
[Brian]: I guess you’re right, I guess I was planning on taking more of a Catholic endurance contest approach to it. So obviously my plans will be a disaster, what are you doing, now that you’re a few weeks in and have a more realistic sense of things?
[Future Brian]: Well, I went to Confession the other day kind of spur of the moment, and honestly that was pretty great. I probably got more grace form that than the coffee would have done for me. I’ve also thought about asking God what HE wants me to get out of Lent going forward. Kind of like the First Reading this Sunday (well in a few Sundays for you) – Samuel thinks he knows which of Jesse’s sons he’s supposed to anoint but God keeps saying “I know this seems to you like the best option, but I have something different in mind”. I feel like he’s telling me so far that some years taking the hardcore approach is great, and other years your life circumstances might throw your plans for a loop, but either way the point of Lent is to grow closer to God and invite him INTO all the areas of your life, and to let him love you. Sometimes it’s fine to make adjustments, and to offer up the regular trials and sufferings that come along as penance in themselves. Other times it’s great to recommit to what we set out to do on Ash Wednesday if we falter in our commitments along the way. But Lent is about him, not you.
[Brian]: Got it. Well thanks for the heads up and I guess the next few weeks will be…interesting.
[Future Brian]: By the way here’s a link to a great knee brace on Amazon. You might want to go ahead and just order that now.
[Future Future Brian]: Hey guys.
[Brians]: Whoa, who are you?
[Future Future Brian]: I’m Brian from Ash Wednesday 2024.
[Brians]: Hey don’t overdo it this time.
[Future Future Brian]: Thanks for the reminder. By the way good news, your baby sleeps through the night no problem now, I remember how rough that was! Also your knee stopped bothering you.
[Brians]: Wow that’s a relief.
[Future Future Brian]: You may want to hang onto that knee brace though for the other knee…