Lent Guide 2023Sample

Monday – I am the beloved

For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.

(Ephesians 2:10)

The great spiritual writer of the last century, Henri Nouwen, tells us that the fundamental truth of who we are – whether we feel it or not – is that long before we are born and long after we die, we are God's beloved. He echoes St. Paul, who tells us that "God prepared in advance" – God knew us long before we were known by others or ourselves.

Sometimes I think I am not good enough because I have not experienced or felt it. I feel that I am yet to be noticed or acknowledged. Maybe I carry, in my subconscious, a message from my experience that plays over and over "I am not good enough". The root of this message could be from a failure, because of something I was told and hold onto, or because I am ashamed of the sinful tendencies I see in myself.

Yet, as Nouwen tells us, I am beloved long before my parents, siblings, teachers, society, or faith community says anything to me or about me. I am special because I belong to God from all eternity. St. Paul says, "God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus". That is the good news and truth Lent teaches us: we are good enough because we are the beloved of God, who has made us right and good in Christ.

Exercise:

Take a moment today to recall a time or a moment when you knew that you were loved and cherished – maybe by a family member, a partner, or a friend. Can you allow yourself to, in those moments, see how God was claiming you as the beloved?

Grace:

I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness. (Jeremiah 31:3)