Last weekend was the Deacon Lenten Retreat at the Archbishop Brunett Retreat and Faith Formation Center in Federal Way. We were blessed to have Bishop Daniel Mueggenborg as our Lenten Retreat guide.
He told a story, one of his real life stories, about a check for $300.00.This story took place in Rome where he was studying to earn degrees in theology and biblical theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University. Now this story was not so much about money as it was in hearing God.He was on his way in cashing his $300.00 check at the money exchange in Rome. As h

e came to the steps of the exchange he noticed a small table off to his left. Now at this table was a small but interesting sign that said: “Donations for the poor. He also noticed that this table was manned by the Sisters of Charity, the order that now St. mother Teresa had started. He said to himself, I can’t look into their eyes or I will be propelled to give the money from th

is check to the poor. Now he had made a deal to himself and God that he would keep track of the amount of money he spends on himself over the 40 days of Lent and would give that amount to the poor. He had also made plans for a trip and that was where he was going to use that $300.00. He entered

into the exchange and cashed his check and headed out the door all the way thinking “I must not make eye contact with the Sisters of Charity or it is all over. He exited the building and came down the stairs and only for a very brief moment he looked at one of the sisters eye to eye. He scurried away thinking he would not have to do

nate the money he had received for his trip. After some distance but still in view he stopped. He asked God, are you going to hold me to my deal, he thought to himself. Something inside propelled him to turn around and he went back, took the $300.00, and laid it on the donation table.

He went back to his empty dorm and didn’t know what to do. But he did feel good about what he did and knew that it was a prompting of the Spirit. He went to the mail room to see if he had received any mail. To his dismay there was one letter there waiting to be picked up. He took the letter opened it and noticed this note that said, “We thought you could use this”. And to his dismay, there was a check in the amount of $300.00. Just as a side note: The amount of money he spent on himself over lent came to almost $300.00.

The note and money was sent by the Knights of Columbus from Tulsa, Oklahoma and this was the first letter the Knights had sent him in five years. Now he knew. Now he realized that movement inside him to give to charity, was the movement of the Spirit as was his suspicions when he gave it.

The point of the story is that we miss out on encounters with God by not opening ourselves to him. We miss out on encounters with God when we do not love as Christ loves. We cannot evangelize if we do not love God like Jesus. We cannot love if we do not open ourselves to him. We can love when we take in our hearts and in our lived experiences that of Christ.

When we open ourselves to the love of God he speaks back to us. And when we open ourselves to His providence, His love in our lives, we gain a new perspective. We give ourselves our journey, our very lives, to the protection and guidance of the Father. That, my friends, is what we receive when we allow Him in, His love which is always offered to us.

I’d like to tell you a story: According to Jewish legend, when God was about to create man, He consulted the angels around his throne, “create him not” said the angel of justice; for he will commit all kinds of wickedness against his fellow man. He will be bad and cruel and dishonest and unrighteous.

The angel of truth said, “Create him not, for he will be false and deceitful for his brothers and sisters and even you.” Create him not”, said the angel of holiness, “he will follow that which is impure in your site and dishonor you to your face.”

Then stepped forward the angel of Mercy who said, “our heavenly Father, create him, for he sins and turns from the path of right and truth and holiness. I’ll take him tenderly by the hand and speak loving words to him and then lead him back to you”. And God indeed created man following the counsel of the Angel of Mercy.

This story clearly illustrates Christ’s words in today’s gospel and one of the quoted passages in the bible; “God so loved the world that he gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life”. And so, God’s love is without condition.

So, what happens to us when we turn our lives over to God? We become more like Jesus. And to become more like Jesus we take with us as we leave this church the gospel message to all we come in contact with whether in the home or at the store. Like Jesus, we join with him in evangelizing the world. That is our call as Catholics. What does Catholic mean? Universal, for all people, and it does have an immense effect on us.

When we love as Christ loves, when we live as Christ lived, in his light, we enter into his life, his mission, to bring the gospel of love, forgiveness and hope to all people, through our words and how we live our lives. We turn over our lives to the one who created them, our Father in Heaven.

We see what happened to Israel in our first reading. God sent messengers to help them and what did the messengers get in return, mocking, and despising God’s warnings. That would never of happened if they had given over to God what was and is God’s- there very lives.

We hear in our second reading God bringing us to life with Christ. God so loved us that he gave his only begotten Son, to us for our very salvation, why? So that we could attain our inheritance, our life with our creator. God so loved us that he gave his only +Son to us to redeem us and to offer us eternal life.

The one ideal to realize is that God took the initiative in our salvation. God chose the approach of love, not of power. God acts not for his own sake but for our sake. God is the Father who is not happy until all his wandering children have come home.

In his book, “Free to be me, Fr. John Powell, SJ said: “I want to love you. That is all…if you chose to leave me, I’ll not stop you. I will leave you free, but I will always love you. There may be a time in your life when you will separate yourself from my love but never believe that you have lost my love, you can only refuse, but you can never lose my love.” For me, these words are reflections of God’s love.

It’s terrible to reject Jesus Christ, to reject God’s offer of love. But how sweet to walk in the light of his love. Our part in the process of redemption is to accept the gift in all humility, and try to respond in kind. We are able to love because God loved us first.

What you will hear at the end of mass is the final charge. The charge to carry on Christ’s mission to the world. Let it resonate in your heart. Make it your life, your purpose as did Christ for us.

A burglar was trying to sell an exquisite rug. “Who will give me a hundred dollars for this carpet?” he shouted at anyone passing by. He soon found an eager buyer. After the sale, a bystander, aware of the value of the rug, approached the seller and asked, “Why didn’t you solicit more for that priceless rug?”

“Is there a number higher than one hundred?” asked the seller. His conception limited his awareness and his action. The same could be said for the apostles. Their conception of themselves limited their awareness and their actions along with their awareness of what Jesus might be able to do.

They had some hope that he would change the world they lived in, envisioning Jesus as a military hero who would restore the kingdom of Israel to its former glory by defeating the Romans. They had no idea what they were really in for. Their conception of the Messiah was far too limited for them to grasp who Jesus truly was.

For this reason, Jesus took them out of their world, the world they knew so very well, out of the relationships they were accustomed to, away from their familiar surroundings. He took them to the top of a high mountain and once they were there, he started to change.

First his clothing, then himself, transparent yet opaque, white yet full of color, while heavenly beings appeared, Elijah and Moses. The apostles heard them conversing about the coming change that would lead to a transformed world.

Peter, James and John did not know what to say. Taken by surprise, Peter mumbled about setting up three tents. Then, to top it all, a cloud cast a shadow over them and they heard a voice, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.”

Then looking around, everything seemed back to normal. Jesus was standing there, just like they had seen him so often. But now they saw him in a different light, for their conception of him and their notion of Messiah had changed.

Six days earlier Jesus had predicted for the first time that the Son of Man would be put to death and three days later would rise again. Peter rebuked him for saying that; in turn Jesus chastised him, “Your mind is not on the things of God but on the things of humans.” Along with James and John, Peter needed this eye opening experience to broaden his conception of the Messiah.

In this Lenten season, perhaps we also need an eye opening experience to better understand who Jesus is for judging by our faith, our conception of God is limited.

Faith, like a roller coaster, has its ups and downs; mountains and valleys. In other words, there are times when our faith burns bright and times when our faith flickers and nearly goes out. Let me illustrate.

In today’s gospel, the faith of Peter, James, and John is bright and strong. But in due time, their faith would flicker and almost fail. That happens in the Garden of Gethsemane, following the Last Supper. Once again Peter, James and John were there with Jesus as he prayed that he would be spared the impending passion. Instead of being attentive to Jesus, the three apostles fell asleep.

Shortly afterwards, Judas arrived in the garden with a large crowd to betray him. The three apostles, whose faith was so strong in today’s gospel, panicked, left him, and fled. Worse yet, Peter later denied knowing Jesus three times. Soon after, however, he was quite remorseful.

Like the apostles, our faith goes through high points and low points. When we are experiencing a high point, our faith is strong and bright. During such moments, we feel so close to Jesus that we can touch him. In moments like this, we truly feel the triune presence of God with the Father embracing us with unconditional love and the Holy Spirit pouring wisdom upon us.

When we experience a low point, our faith flickers and almost goes out, like the disciples’ faith did in the garden of Gethsemane. During those low points, Jesus seems to have lost his fight with Satan and we are more apt to sin. The Father seems to have left us as orphans and we feel ignored. The Holy Spirit has become a distant memory.

When the moments of darkness arise, recall the example of Abraham in today’s first reading. His faith flickered and almost failed him when God asked him to sacrifice his son, Isaac. However pained he felt as he set out to do what God asked of him, he still trusted God and God didn’t let him down, blessing him beyond his wildest dreams.

Does our limited conception of God prevent us from having that same divine encounter and believing that we will be blessed beyond our wildest dreams? The challenge of Lent is dying to self. Oh yes, we like to hold on to our selfishness and self-centeredness. Dying to self calls us to surrender to God, just as Abraham did, being willing to sacrifice everything, even our future, knowing that something beyond our wildest dreams awaits us. Only when we embrace such a total surrender can we begin to fathom the glory of the mountaintop as the apostles did, As Paul notes, won’t the God who did not spare his only son “give us everything else along with him?” Remain faithful and God will reward you with the life that he has promised to those who love him.

Today’s gospel is short and simple. Instead of elaborating on the Lord’s many temptations, Mark briefly tells us that Jesus went into the desert for forty days, fought off temptation and was administered to by angels. After John was arrested, Jesus returned to Galilee and proclaimed that the Kingdom of God is at hand, urging anyone who would listen, “Repent and believe in the gospel.” In this pithy sermon, just what is Jesus asking of us?

Simply put, he is asking us to reform our lives. Notice that he doesn’t present us with a litany of rules. He isn’t insisting that we retreat from the real world or adopt a monastic life style nor is he requiring a life of prayer, sacrifices and penances. He is asking for a total change of heart, but why?

Daily we hear bad news from local crime scenes to rampant shootings and some of us wonder why God allows such evil to happen. The truth is God does not inflict evil. The world is good because God created it, and God is Good. People are good because people are made in the likeness of God, who is Good. You and I are good because we are children of God. And yes, since God gave us free will, good people can choose to become evil people, but that is their choice. Even the most horrible person to ever live could still have a change of heart, thus, reject evil, repent and become a good person. Thank God, the world is a good place.

While we are all good, and the world we live in is good, the truth is we are all sinners. Even Pope Francis admits to being one and that should not surprise us. As we heard in the gospel, Jesus spent forty days in the desert, tempted by Satan. If Satan endeavored to tempt the Son of God, then why would he not spend time luring us into temptation? If we follow Jesus’ advice and repent, then we need to find ways to confront the many temptations that assault us daily.

However we visualize the evil one, be it as a serpent, as Satan, or the devil, it strives to lure us into thinking there is nothing dangerous about temptations. They come in all shapes and sizes from white lies to lurid websites on the Internet to multi-million dollar Ponzi schemes offered under the counter and many shades of gray in between. When we are tempted, we might rationalize, “What is wrong with a little sin?” On the surface, perhaps nothing, but as the ad for a certain potato chip used to go, “You can’t eat just one.”

Obviously Satan is successful at luring us to sin for there would be no need for the season of Lent if all Christians repented and believed in the gospel, thus were in a close and intimate relationship with God. As Christians, we share the common experience with Jesus of baptism and through this sacrament; we entered into a covenant with God who promises us everlasting life. As was the case with Jesus, our journey following baptism has been and will always be filled with temptations, too numerous to count, but unlike Jesus, our temptations have and will lead us astray at times. Unfortunately, baptism does not make us devil-proof.

Lent is our 40 day retreat to confront our sinfulness and come to grips with whatever separates us from God and one another. This is why Jesus urges us to repent.

Now, Jesus is not speaking of some vague repentance, like a simple apology. He has a specific plan for changing our hearts. The first step is to pray. He gave us an example by spending forty days in prayer. You might say, “How can I possibly find more time to pray?” That’s where the second step comes in: fasting. I don’t mean skipping meals. In pitching the Rice Bowl, for example, I have suggested each week eating a simple meal so that others can simply eat. In addition to eating more simply – consider fasting from other things: video games, chat rooms, indiscriminate television, the Internet, Facebook, needless shopping; anything else that consumes your time and energy, preventing you from deepening your relationship with God. The time you save from doing habitual things can be better spent in prayer, reading scripture, or meditating. Instead of email, try knee-mail. Knee mail is getting down on your knees and praying; that is the first step toward changing our hearts.

Prayer and fasting lead to the third step: financial sacrifice. Let’s face it, as Americans, it is easy for us to turn money into an idol. Our financial sacrifices can make a positive change in our world. Giving helps both others and the giver. Giving is the most practical way we have of saying to God, “All that I am and all I have, I owe to you. It belongs to you, not me.” St. John Paul II once said, “If alms are lacking, our life does not yet converge fully towards God.”

Jesus knew first hand from experience how difficult our journey following baptism could be of honoring our covenant with God. He proclaimed to anyone who would listen, “The kingdom of God is at hand! Repent and believe in the gospel.” The kingdom of God is the absence of evil and the prescription for bringing that about is found in the gospel. We know full well that we will never get rid of temptations and sinbut for us to do our part in bringing about the kingdom of God, we must repent and turn from sinfulness. That is our lifelong mission. With the gospel, Jesus offers us the antidote for finding what truly matters in life, unlike Satan who will never take the blame for the consequences of our actions.

Everything Jesus tells us not to do in today’s gospel, we as Catholics tend to do. We put our alms into an envelope so both the parish and the IRS can keep track of our donations. We know that praying alone in our rooms is not enough so we also worship as a faith community. Today, we will leave church with a black smudge of ashes on our foreheads, not as a sign of virtue but a public declaration of our sinfulness, so that everyone else can see that we have begun our annual observance of Lent.

Are we ignoring the command of Christ to be discreet? Not really. Jesus is using rhetoric to get his point across. There must be more to our penitential observances, he tells us, than the externals. At the heart of every good action, there needs to be a certain detachment from the approval of others. The reward of a good Lent comes from the Father in Heaven, not from our admiring neighbor.

Lent is not about giving up desert or favorite foods and drink. It is not about doing something hard for the next six weeks. Lent is a time set apart for us to reflect in a special way on our lives, a time to arrive at a better understanding of our relationship with God. Whatever we do during this holy season ought to help us deepen our relationship with the God who made us and loves us unconditionally.

Ash Wednesday is the beginning of a process, the reliving of our baptism, our dying with Jesus Christ to sin, and rising with him to new life. Our extra works of charity, worship, and self-denial will be valid only insofar as they foster and demonstrate that process.

St. Paul tells us that now is the acceptable time to be reconciled with God. We cannot be at peace with God if we are not at peace with our neighbor. Whatever is keeping us from a complete relationship with God, whatever is spoiling our relationship with our family friends or coworkers is what we should address this Lent. Just as we now seek God’s forgiveness for our wrongdoing, God invites us to forgive others for when they have wronged us.

Since they assist us in saying no to self and yes to God, fasting, prayer, and almsgiving should foster reconciliation, not distract us from it.

The recognition that we are sinful is universal. All religions teach that when we have sinned, we are to reconcile with God and one another as part of the daily living out of our faith. We don’t wait for a special time to forgive and be forgiven, but each religion also sets apart a special time to focus on this very human need to be reconciled with God and with others.

For any number of reasons, many of you shy away from the sacrament of reconciliation, and if you are one who does, I urge you to reconsider what God is offering you in this sacramental encounter that allows you to hear his words of absolution.

In addition to Saturday afternoons before Mass, confessions will be heard at the Lenten Reconciliation service on Monday, March 5 from 3-4:30 and from 6-7 in the evening. On that day, Fr. Paul and Fr. Jerry will also be on hand to hear confessions. If none of these times work for you, remember that I will gladly celebrate the sacrament with you any time by appointment.

In the words of today’s psalm, we prayed, “a clean heart create for me, O God/ and a steadfast spirit renew within me.” This God desires to do but first we must seek to be cleansed. May this Lent restore to its former beauty the robe of grace first given us at our baptism. May these 40 days of Lent be a true springtime, a real rebirth for all of us.

On my recent trip to San Diego, I was grateful for one certain app on my cell phone: Mapquest. That app showed me what route to take and also told me how to get to my destination by means of public transit. I didn’t get lost once. Having the right directions certainly made for an easier journey.

Life itself is a journey and Jesus has come to give us directions to make our journey through life easier. “Repent and believe in the gospel,” he proclaims at the start of his ministry; they are the first words he spoke in Mark’s gospel. Clearly this urgent message was important to him.

Two thousand years later, those six words continue to turn the world upside down. Repentance is something we should do whenever the need arises but what is it? It is not merely saying, “I’m sorry.” To be truly repentant, one must be willing to change one’s life. Now you may be thinking that I am out of season since repentance is the message we usually hear throughout Lent, which is weeks away, but repentance isn’t just a Lenten activity.

Think back to the first reading, which comes from one of the shortest books in the Bible. The book of Jonah can be read in minutes. You would think that this little book would be as obscure as the other less known books of the Bible yet Jonah’s story captures our imagination.

At the beginning of this book, God told Jonah, “Go at once to Nineveh, that great city and proclaim judgment upon it; for their wickedness comes before me.” But Jonah chose not to, fleeing instead in the opposite direction. He boards a ship, finds himself in a storm and blaming him for their plight, the crew throws him over board. The sea then calms down. Jonah spends three days in the belly of a big fish, a vision that foreshadowed Christ’s three days in the tomb.
He is then spewed upon the shore. From there he goes to Nineveh and proclaims God’s message of repentance to its residents. Much to his dismay, (after all, they are pagans) the citizens of Nineveh recognized their wrong-doing, repent, change their ways, and are spared by God.

Jonah delivered a timeless message. He has awakened countless listeners to the fact that morality is the one quality God seeks in us humans. God doesn’t care about our status in life, or where we live, or the color of our skin, or our past. What God desires is that we conduct ourselves in a moral manner in the present moment. Fortunately for us, God forgets the sin, but not the repentant sinner.

One could view Jonah’s ultimatum as a threat. “Do this or else, God will punish you!” That was a message we often heard while growing up from our parents and teachers. We are still told to do certain things or face the consequences if we don’t, such as observing the speed limit. Go too fast and you are apt to get a speeding ticket or cause an accident that could put a hefty dent in your wallet. When we act immorally, the pleasure is likely to be fleeting but the consequences could be long lasting. No wonder, Jonah’s message is well known: change directions or else!

Paul also cautions his listeners of their need to repent, telling them that life is fleeting. “I tell you, brothers and sisters, the time is running out.” They need to embrace the Gospel and repent before it is too late. Paul then tells them that their world is passing away. The kingdom of God will render pointless all of the world’s false values and goals.

Unlike Jonah, Jesus didn’t march on the scene as a prophet of gloom and doom. Instead, He is telling us, “Something great is happening! Change direction and follow me or lose out!” There is more to life than simply avoiding sin. His call to repentance is an invitation to see life as God does: our path to heaven. Jesus has come to offer us the blueprint for building the Kingdom of God in our lifetime.

As followers of Christ, we should be the happiest people on earth. We know where we are going and we know how to get there. Along the way, there will be trials and tribulations to disrupt our journey. There are weaknesses in our human nature that often lead us astray, but then God knows we cannot make this trip alone. That is why Jesus is on the scene to give us directions. It comes down to you and me, today, hearing his call and responding as though our lives depend on it.

We can be the happiest people on earth if we accept Jesus’ invitation to follow him like the apostles did. They put aside everything and gave Jesus their undivided attention to learn his message of hope and salvation. His message impressed them so much that, unlike reluctant Jonah, they went forth with great enthusiasm and shared Jesus’ directions with anyone who would listen.

Today’s Gospel summarizes Jesus’ teaching. His message is simple: repent and believe in the Gospel, the Good News. The Good News is that happiness and peace are offered to us if we are willing to fight against evil and turn to the Lord. The Good News is that nothing can take Christ away from us. No one, no situation in life, nothing can destroy the joy that we have in being united to the Lord.

My friends, these readings extend the invitation for us to repent and believe that what Jesus has to say will make a difference in your life journey and mine, providing us with the best directions for living life fully and reaching heaven.