Second Sunday of Lent

Today we had the Gospel of the Transfiguration of Our Lord, a history that takes place shortly before Christ’s Passion. It really makes one reflect on how easily we are led to deny Christ in our lives. St. Peter, who had been destined as the Head of the Church on earth, who was one of only 3 apostles who saw the physical manifestation of Christ’s divinity, who, according to St. Luke, heard the prophets Moses and Elias discussing Christ’s upcoming sacrifice and St. Peter’s own part in it. If St. Peter, having been blessed and forewarned by all of these events and so many more, could betray Our Lord through his denial 3 times, how much more likely am I to deny Christ every time I choose to be impatient, every time I walk past a basket of clothes to be folded or a sink of dishes to be washed? Every time I choose to do the bare minimum, instead of going higher, I too am abandoning Christ, and He forgives me time and again.

St. Paul’s Epistle today reminds me of my favorite line: “For this is the will of God: your sanctification.” God wants our sanctification, and we need never be afraid that He will withdraw His support, even if we have abandoned Him. This reminder of God’s love brought me to my Godmother’s love, unfailing even when I have seemingly abandoned her to only hear from me once a year. This year, I’m going to make up for it, and I’ve already scheduled letter writing to her for the next month. A little at a time, slowly but surely building up good habits, like I’ve been doing for the past 7 weeks. She will have a great Easter gift waiting for her when the time comes. May we all spend this next 5 weeks reconnecting with someone we lost touch with, because true loved ones don’t count the days, months, or years in between contact, but rather the sincerity of what we communicate.