This Sunday’s Gospel reading might sound familiar to you. The first half of the Gospel was read the first Sunday of January when we celebrated the Baptism of our Lord. Just a few lines after Jesus’s baptism we read that he is driven to the desert where he is tempted by Satin. This quick change from joy to sorrow seems out of place to us, but it is the strength Jesus receives from his baptism that allows him to withstand all of the temptation he endured. We don’t often think of it in those terms, but for us as well baptism can be a source of strength to support us in all our trials. Because I am baptized I know that I am one with Jesus. I am a child of God, and I can trust in God’s love, forgiveness and grace. There is no reason we should not trust God so fully as did Jesus. As we face the difficulties of life today, much of our trouble comes from not accepting as certain God’s love for us. In Baptism we became children of God. We can trust our Heavenly Father just as certainly as did Jesus. Lent is not a season of pain and suffering. It is a time of strength found in God’s love made sure to us in our baptism.
Pastor Bill