Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
—Matthew 4:1 (NIV)

On the day the Spirit
leads you
into the wilderness,
may you know
it was a Friend
that led you there
and that Friend
hasn’t left your side
for a minute.

On the day,
you would turn those stones
into bread, if you could–
raise the dead,
open blind eyes,
wake up the world,
lift the dark,
end the war–
and you are tempted to despair,
may those stones become
a seat,
a pillow,
an altar.

On the day,
you are visited by
your irrelevance,
aloneness,
powerlessness,
limitations
or longings,
may you be ministered to
by angels.

God, you are my God. I am searching so hard to find you.
Body and soul, I thirst for you in this dry and weary land without water.
—Psalm 63:1 (ERV)

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A Lenten Pause

Every day God is telling us, “You are my beloved child; in you, I am well pleased.” During this season of Lent, I invite you to join me in receiving our belovedness through this Daily Prayer Practice.

“Where is your wilderness?” Bishop John Stephens asked us when he visited St. Stephens on the first Sunday of Lent. We are called beloved and led into a wilderness in which we are hungry, alone and tempted to find an easy way out. Where is your wilderness? How is God loving you there? What “angels” have ministered and encouraged you?

Credits and References:
The Temptation in the Wilderness by Briton Rivière (1898), Public Domain
Poem “A Blessing for When You’re in the Wilderness” by Esther Hizsa, 2023.
“Angel” Mt Hope Cemetery in Rochester, NY by Aaron Schock. Used with permission.
“Time” by Cale Woodley. Used with permission.

© Esther Hizsa, An Everyday Pilgrim, 2023.
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without permission from Esther Hizsa is prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used provided there is a link to the original content and credit is given as follows: © Esther Hizsa, An Everyday Pilgrim 2013-2023.  http://www.estherhizsa.com