“…that we may grow in understanding of the riches hidden in Christ,
and by worthy conduct pursue their effects.”
Collect, First Sunday of Lent

The Collect, or Opening Prayer of each Sunday of Lent calls us to hear more attentively the Word of God each Sunday in Lent, AND helps us to posture ourselves more effectively to truly understand that which we hear.

If we begin Lent by looking within, preparing a course of prayer and sacrifice to follow for this season, we might be putting the cart before the horse. While I might begin a leisurely drive by simply getting into the car and heading out the driveway, my actions reflect that I have no particular destination in mind. Most often, however, there is a destination I have in mind, and each turn I make, beginning with the direction I take at the end of that driveway, will be made with that destination in mind.

This doesn’t mean, of course, that there is only one route that I must follow each time I make my way to where I am going. Sometimes my route will be changed in response to streets that are closed for repairs or because of power lines that have been downed by a recent storm. Sometimes I change up the route just because I can, and it will be more interesting or more enjoyable to drive and to see differently.

So, while there are many options to us as we begin this holy season, the destination, the true Object of our prayer and the true hope within my commitments to sacrifice will set the stage, the purpose, and the direction of Lent. If there should turn out to be detours along the way for reasons of repair or the downing of power lines upon which we might have depended, all is not lost. The riches hidden in Christ which we seek will either validate or allow for a change in the route we have set for ourselves.
Fr. Tom