Fairfield Prep Lenten Reflections

"It’s not always easy for us to live up to the Jesus ideal, which is why it is not easy to stand before the Son of Man."

"Many of us, think that fasting is choosing to give up food for a period of time, but it is much more than that."

How does the story of Noah and the flood impact us today?

Lent offers us an opportunity to ask ourselves: Are we helping the sick, the hungry and those in need?

As humans, we find ourselves resisting God, just as the Israelites did and as we find ourselves today.

Who is your "rock in your life? How did that person help build you to who you are today?

"We are invited to make amends and make ourselves a new spirit."

When we sacrifice for our relationship with God, we take our sacrifices as a loving gift to which we were blessed.

We are all sinners, so it is important to show mercy to those around us and forgive those who wrong us.

True greatness in our lives lies not in the accolades we receive or the positions of honor we hold, but in the lives we touch and the positive impact we have on the world around us.

How can one be a true disciple of Christ in 2024? By serving others.

This Lenten season prompts us to examine the fetters that may weigh us down—the chains of sin, doubt, or fear.

A father’s love can overcome nearly anything, and it is through this perspective that we can apply to our own lives.

In our increasingly isolating digital world, people have a spiritual and social thirst for compassionate salvation.

Anger towards our wrongdoer can consume our way of thinking, but only when we forgive are we able to feel free.

"God did not simply send Jesus and – boom – the world was fixed."

Jesus is actively telling us that we must make a decision and choose to either be on his side or not.

God is calling us to listen to where He is in our lives and humbly ask for His mercy as we learn to better grow closer to Him.

"It is in my humanity that I am not worthy. It is only through God’s grace that I am worthy."

We know that things do not always work out in our favor, but that should not stop us from having hope.

The Son of God cannot go it alone. Even Jesus needs help.

Although reassurance from others may provide a brief rush of satisfaction or peace, the only opinion other than our own that really matters, is God’s.

"This Lenten season, I found myself thinking about my father and the sacrifices he has made for my family and I as a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom."

"I find even more reason to put my trust in Jesus when I see His very human side: '...and Jesus wept'."

If we remain faithful to God and put our trust in him, He will help us in our time of need.

As much as Jesus is the living son of God, he is the son of Joseph the carpenter— and, he is no less the son of one or the other.

Even when we feel unworthy or incapable, God will accomplish the meaning of the name in us.

During Lent, we are called upon to champion others and do “the works,” to be an active part of good in the world.

No matter how far we may have strayed or how broken we may feel, God is always ready to reconcile with us and to restore us to wholeness.

The picture we have of Jesus before the final events of his life on earth is of his sharing a meal with the people closest to him. 

The concept of being a light to the nations is rooted in the Ignatian call to be "men and women for others."

In the story of Judas, we are left to ponder: have we ever betrayed our own values and acted in a way we shouldn’t have?

For me, Good Friday's readings remind me that Jesus is just as much human as he is divine.

Just as God rested on the seventh day, Lent invites us to pause and trust in His plan.

As Easter people, we rejoice in the certain promise that we can always find new life, and a renewed spirit.