Lent 2020: Facing the truth.

It was a moment of truth. No need to get into the particulars, we’ve all had them, but when they arrive they cause us to gasp and/or recoil. They make us uncomfortable, and many of us instantly run to solutions or excuses to remove, ease, or deny the truth that’s suddenly looking us square in the face. I’m so adept as this behavior, I’ve had to pay someone to teach me to look at the truth! Even with that person’s help, my eyesight is far from 20/20. 

I could give examples from history, moments that illustrate the importance of looking at truth, wrestling with it, sitting uncomfortably beside it, rather than face or deal with it, but that would distance us from the moments in our own lives that need to be looked at. Focusing on society, or history, is so much easier than looking in the mirror. 

Lent is an invitation to look at truth. No wonder it is not a popular season in the liturgical calendar. Some denominations don’t even recognize it, but those of us who do, those of us who are willing to make this journey, are in for a powerful and wonderful adventure. It’s not a pilgrimage into the light, although I believe there is light in the end. It’s a pilgrimage into the truth, and often that begins with darkness. 

What’s really going on in our hearts? 

What are we really up to when no one is looking? 

Who are we really when we strip away the shiny paper with which we wrap ourselves?

It’s not easy work, which is why so few are willing to do it. We’ll be tempted to focus on solutions, like giving things up (so we’ll lose weight), but the real beauty of the season is found when we walk slowly enough and look deliberately enough at ourselves. We’re told the truth will set us free, but it’s going to hurt like heck to get there!

The light that is Easter awaits us all at the end of these 40 days. It’s more brilliant than any other light, and more powerful than any darkness. In fact, the darkness cannot consume or comprehend the light, we’re also told.

So, I invite you on a journey that is yours alone to take. May we have the courage to begin, the fortitude to continue, and the grace to reach the end. 

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