A Very Acceptable Time

Today’s second reading, from the second letter of Paul to the Corinthians, reminds us that we are ‘ambassadors for Christ’ and as such, we should be ‘reconciled to God.’ And further, that we should not ‘receive the grace of God in vain.’

I recently had a conversation with a friend who is contemplating a career change doing something that he hasn’t done before. The new role requires skills that he has not yet had the opportunity to develop. It reminded me of another conversation where someone asked me if God chooses those who are equipped, or if God instead equips those He chooses. On one hand, It is comforting to know that God equips us for whatever He asks us to do; a humbling reminder that God has a plan that we may not yet be privy to. But that said, it is probably best to do what we can to be ‘reconciled to God’ and prepared for whatever he puts in front of us by having contrite hearts and humility that admits that we do not know it all, and that we are in need of continually being formed.

Who among us is not preparing for something new? Whether it is in our careers, or in our schooling, or in our level of responsibility to our families, we are all preparing for something new. As we prepare for whatever this new thing is, there is an uncertainty that comes with the understanding that we do not know everything we think we need to know. It is a vulnerable feeling where we are tempted, just as Christ must have been during his time in the desert before he started his new ministry. It is at times like these that we should pray for humility, so that we may accept our shortcomings and seek ways to address them.

For many of us though, this humility does not come easily. It is difficult to admit that we are flawed. It is difficult to admit that we do not have all the answers. It is difficult to admit that we are, well, human. Paul’s second letter reminds us that it is the reconciliation of our humanity that Christ lived and died for, and that God values us so much that he gave his own son over to the experiences of that humanity so that we might ultimately be made whole with him, ‘For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.’

While it is very tempting to put off the steps necessary to improve ourselves until ‘someday’ or ‘tomorrow’ or when we have the energy, or when we have the time, Lent serves as a reminder that, in Paul’s words, ‘Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.’ Lent provides us with a ‘very acceptable’ time to reflect on our strengths and our weaknesses. It provides us with an opportunity to be strong in the face of a weakness we have identified in ourselves, be it through fasting or the taking on of some sort of behavior that improves our lives or, even better, the lives of those around us. It provides us with a hard and fast start date, because sometimes we need that. Lent invites us to change ourselves, to better ourselves, so that we might be these ‘ambassadors for Christ’ that we are all invited to be.

God is not asking us to be perfect, but he is asking that we ‘not receive the grace of God in vain.’ It is my prayer for you and for myself as we begin this year’s Lenten journey that we all identify in ourselves those areas that are in need of improvement, and that we find the humility to ask for God’s assistance in addressing these areas, for ‘now is the time of salvation.’

Author: Tom Garrison, Principal