Forty Days~Water~Desert~Lent~Forty Nights

~~~ First Sunday of Lent ~~~

~~~ Genesis 9:8-15 ~~~ Psalm 25 ~~~ 1 Peter 3:18-22 ~~~ 

~~~ Mark 1:12-15 ~~~

Forty Days of Lent has deep meaning for us...

God sent a great flood. It rained for forty days and forty nights,

but God saved Noah, his family and pairs of animals of all species.

Jesus is led into the desert to be tried and tempted 

by the devil for forty days and nights.

The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, 

and he remained in the desert for forty days,

tempted by Satan.

Jesus was alone in the desert...a time of solitude and torment.

He was being tested by Satan...Satan needed to prove

 to himself that Jesus was truly the Son of God.

The Spirit drove Jesus into the desert.

Was this time of temptation part of God's plan?

Was it necessary for Jesus to be put to the test?

Did Jesus need to have a personal encounter with Satan?

Is this what gave Jesus his later power over the Evil One?

After these temptations in the desert the Evil One

 knew that Jesus was the Savior.

After the flood God promised to never again destroy

 the Earth with floods.

He sends a brilliant rainbow

 to spread across the sky sealing his promise.

Your ways, O Lord, are love and truth to those 

who keep your covenant.

God did not abandon Jesus while he was in the desert;

he sent the angels to minister to him.

The angels were not there to prevent the attacks from Satan

they were present to let Jesus know he was not alone.

God has given us our own guardian angel.

In times of temptation it is this angel 

that comes to our assistance.

The waters of our Baptism is a reminder 

of the covenant God made with Noah.

Through our Baptism waters we are saved.

Forty Days...flood...rainbow...

...desert...Satan...temptation...salvation...

Remember the Blessings of the Rainbow.

It is true there can be no rainbow without the rains.

Jesus overcame the temptations in the desert for our salvation.

Repent, and believe in the gospel.

~~~Peace~~~

Painted Promise Across the Sky

~~~ Genesis 9: 8-15 ~~~ Psalm 25 ~~~ 1Peter 3:18-22 ~~~ Mark 1: 12-15 ~~~

Covenant...Rainbows...

No matter how old I get I like most people enjoy seeing rainbows. There is something almost magical about the way the colors arch so perfectly across the sky. It is as if God has gotten out his giant water color set to paint in the air. It reminds me that we have the most phonomenal God. It makes me giddy with excitement. The best is when you see the rare double rainbow or twin rainbows side by side. Two for the price of one rain shower. 

I wonder how far a rainbow can be seen?

As we see in today's Genesis reading God had a definite plan in mind when he revealed the first rainbow across the sky for Noah. He told Noah, "This is the sign that I am giving for all ages to come, of the covenant between me and you and every living creature with you..." God promised to never send another devastating flood. This covenant God entered into with Noah was with all people the whole of mankind.

One might ask why would God use a rainbow? Today we understand that a rainbow is created by light from the sun refracting through water, but in Noah's time it was more mysterious. The theme of water runs throughout the Bible. This is just one of the early references that alluded to our cleansing of sin and evil. In a way God was baptizing the whole earth.

We have this reading during Lent because it is a preview of our salvation. It certainly has nothing to do with any weather phenomenon. We need to be remind each year of our salvation story and Lent is the prefect time to get our attention. We need to be reminded because in spite of our Baptism and faithfully following Jesus we still fall into sin.

It seems the power of sin is stronger than our knowledge of God's saving power. No matter who you are or what position you hold in society or the church; we must all be vigilant about sinfulness in our lives. Lent is a time to return to God's way. Lent is a time to remember the message of the rainbow. The message of God's immense love for all of his living creatures.

The Grace of God is always available for us to draw strength,
all we need do is ask for it.

The next time you see a rainbow remember that it is a sign of God's covenant. a promise of our salvation. It is a sign to give us hope in our eternal reward with
God in heaven.

This image reflects God's covenant of life to me.

The light reflected throughout is the gift of eternal life.

The Gift of Baptism.