Author: Sister Laetitia Therese , O.C.D.
As we journey with Jesus in the desert during this Lenten pilgrimage, I am comforted that He thoroughly understands the weaknesses and struggles of our lives. I have been particularly praying with His experience of temptation. It can be easy to gloss over. We know He was tempted, but surely it wasn’t hard for Him? This is not true. The Enemy is brutal and intentional – coming when Jesus is at His weakest point – at the end of fasting for forty days. He experienced real trial.
What gave Jesus the courage to overcome temptation in contrast to our first human parents who failed? Jesus was sure of His relationship with the Father and rooted in His identity. The tempter says to Him repeatedly, “If you are the Son of God…” He is trying to get Jesus to question His identity and to break the bond of trust between Father and Son. This was his tactic with our first human parents. “Did God really say…” trying to drive a wedge in the relationship through suspicion and doubt of God’s goodness. Jesus shows us this is the way to overcoming temptation in our own lives. Sinfulness is usually rooted in thinking God’s commandments are not for my ultimate good and it’s better to rely on myself and live life my way. To counter this, we must live in the truth of our relationship with God and our identity. Each of us is a beloved son or daughter of the Father. Jesus died for each of us personally. The Holy Spirit delights to make His home in our souls. We must live in the light of this truth, grounding ourselves with means of support including praying with Sacred Scripture, receiving the Sacraments, good spiritual reading, and friends who support our faith journey. Let us not be afraid to encounter the inevitable temptations that will come in our lives, but turn to Jesus who is accompanying us at every moment, and ask Him to help us grow in love and trust of our relationship and identity in Him.