Every year, on the First Sunday of Lent the Church presents to us the Gospel of the temptation of Jesus in the desert, Matthew 4:1-11. In the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, we hear how Jesus, after His baptism, was led by the Spirit into the wilderness for forty days. There He fasted, prayed, and faced temptation.
Why does the Church begin Lent with this scene? Because Lent is our desert experience.
The desert is a place of silence. A place where distractions are removed. A place where we encounter ourselves — and where we encounter God. But the desert is also a place of testing. Just as Jesus was tempted, we too experience temptation: the temptation to seek comfort over sacrifice, pleasure over discipline, power over humility, self over Go. Notice something important: Jesus does not avoid temptation. He faces it. And He overcomes it — not by argument, not by power, but by faithfulness to God’s Word. Let us ask ourselves today:
What is the “desert” I need to enter this Lent?
What temptation do I need God’s help to overcome?
What practical step will I take starting today?
Before Jesus began His public ministry, there was the desert. Before Easter joy, there is the Lenten journey. Yet we do not walk this path alone. The Spirit was with Jesus in the desert, and Christ walks with us today. If we embrace this season sincerely and prayerfully, Easter will not be just another celebration — it will be a personal experience of renewal and grace. May this holy season purify our hearts, strengthen our faith, and lead us to the joy of the Resurrection.