Musical Prelude and Service.

Luke 4:1-13
As I spent time in reflection this past week, my thoughts kept returning to two songs by Canadian poets and songwriters – well, especially particular lines from two songs. In Leonard Cohen’s Anthem he offers up the line, “There’s a crack, a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.”
In fact, the full chorus to that song is: “Ring the bells that still can ring, forget your perfect offering. There’s a crack, a crack in everything. That’s how the light gets in.”
And my thoughts also went to Bruce Cockburn’s Lovers in a Dangerous Time, where he sings, “you gotta kick at the darkness, till it bleeds daylight.” Again, to put that line in the context of the song, the full verse is:
“When you’re lovers in a dangerous time,
Sometimes you’re made to feel as if your love’s a crime
Nothing worth having comes without some kind of fight
You gotta kick at the darkness till it bleeds daylight”
Both songs speak to the need for persistence. They both insist there is light. There is life even in the midst of cruelty, of death, of despair. But we need to be active and work to make that life and that love apparent for all to see.
We are now in the season of Lent. This is the season that leads us into Holy Week and Easter. It is in many ways a time of preparation. It is that season when we focus on what our faith means; what our relationship to God through Jesus looks like. It is often approached as a time of fasting or sacrifice. Giving something up for Lent – our way of mimicking Jesus fasting in the wilderness or reminding us of Christ’s sacrifice.
In past years I will confess I have struggled to hold on to the discipline; the spirituality around these Lenten practices. Why am I doing this? Life can come at us fast and it is easy to be distracted and find our focus pulled in other directions.
But this year, this Lent, I feel like things are different. It is very possible I am wrong. It wouldn’t be the first time. But considering the state of the world right now – considering the anxiety, the fear, the anger, I am witnessing, I can’t hep but believe, there is a need for some way of focusing our attention, our thoughts, our spirits on what we hold on to.
Focusing on where our faith truly points us.
In today’s scripture from Luke’s gospel, Jesus is led by the Spirit into the wilderness where he is tested for 40 days and nights. Jesus is tempted by Satan. He of course resists these temptations, emerges from the wilderness and proceeds on his mission of healing and teaching.
So what are the temptations put before Jesus? He is tempted by bread, power and safety. All he needs to do is worship Satan and he will have command of the most powerful rulers of the world. All he needs to do is use his own power to satisfy his hunger for bread. All he needs to do is challenge or test God to truly feel safe and secure.
It feels like we are right now, living in a pivotal moment in our world. I think it is significant that we are now in the Season of Lent. We are entering a time when we reflect on how we are called to accompany Jesus on his road to Jerusalem and what it means to follow and learn from and be healed by Jesus on this journey.
I have referenced David Lose many times in the past and I am returning to him once again. In an essay he wrote reflecting on this scripture, he talks about the notion of identity theft that he finds in this story. Satan, the adversary, encourages Jesus to alter who he is and his relationship with God. Worship the Adversary, test God, turn away from that path.
Do we find ourselves facing similar temptations that are in their own way a theft of identity in terms of our relationship to God?
Many Christians at the beginning of Lent; on Ash Wednesday, are marked with a cross using ashes. It is a recognition of our mortality and also a reminder that we belong to Christ. We were born to Christ and will die in Christ. To quote Professor Lose, “God loves us and will keep loving us, no matter what. For this reason, we are enough.”
Jesus is tempted or tested by the lure of easy bread, power and safety, or security. All Jesus needs to do, he is told, is put his trust somewhere other than his trust in God, his devotion and commitment to God.
In this moment in time, it really does seem like we are walking through a valley. And right now, it is difficult to consider where this valley ends. As a consequence, we may be experiencing fear – perhaps anger and quite possibly heartbreak. Or perhaps this is due to the possibility that we’re going to experience very real pain. We could witness the end of a number dreams and assumptions about what the immediate future may hold for us. Or perhaps we are concerned about the safety and the health of people we know and love and even those we have yet to even meet.
Perhaps you are enraged by all that is happening right now. That there are so many who are suffering or being threatened and put in danger simply to enrich a select few who are exploiting the fear and vulnerability of others. And perhaps we are angry because we feel powerless in the face of all of this.
How are we going to react in the coming weeks and months and perhaps years?
Well, we could be tempted to shy away from putting our trust in God. We could be tempted to give into despair, to turn to hatred and draw inwards, only worrying about ourselves and those closest to us. We could simply give in to the nihilism encouraged by the powers of the world. In other words, follow the wisdom and the ethics being pushed by those creating the chaos and the panic we are now experiencing.
Or perhaps in this season of reflection and recentering we lean into our faith, we lean into our trust in the carpenter’s son, the rabbi from Galilee who taught us to love our enemy and care for the weak, the stranger, and to live for today. Perhaps we drop our burdens and follow Jesus on his journey to Jerusalem, finding joy along the way.
And as we do so, let us remember where that journey ultimately ends. Yes, it includes Jesus being nailed to a cross; killed by the ruling empire, the forces of injustice and death. But we can never forget that the journey does not stop there. It continues to an empty grave and the proclamation of new life, of new beginning.
Something I read this past week suggested that Jesus would laugh at the notion his followers were giving up the things that bring them joy in this season of Lent. In this time, we need to hold on to what brings us joy. Instead, think of how to give up those things that isolate us from one another; the things that pull us away from God. Give up hatred, give up jealousy, give up fear.
One way I am keeping Lent is to dedicate time to silence and reflection. I am taking time for prayer and to reminding myself of what brings me joy and peace. As part of that, I am taking 30 minutes of silent reflection in our sanctuary on Thursdays at noon and inviting people to join me in this time of silence. Please know that you are welcome to join me for all or part of that time.
I don’t want to tell you how to mark and how to practice Lent, but I want to encourage you to reflect on how we can work to deepen our relationship and our commitment to God in times of anxiety, in times of uncertainty, in times of anger. How do we connect with God when we deepen our relationships and commitments to one another in these times?
We walk through a dark valley, but the light is never far away. We are never far from the signs of life and love. Let us seek out those cracks and let us never stop kicking to let the light shine through.
Let us seek out new life and be a part of encouraging it to bloom into something joyous and beautiful.
Thanks be to God. Amen
Rev. Warner Bloomfield

Music provided with permission through licensing with CCLI License number
2701258 and One License # A-731789