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Day 13 – Remaining Awake

If we want to be able to discover the true meaning of life, discern the personal mission that God has entrusted to us, or simply hope to live well at the present time, “staying awake” is the prerequisite of achieving these goals. In fact, it can be said that one of our most important survival skills is the ability to “stay awake” as much as possible. We can even put it this way:

whether we can live with dignity depends on whether or not we can live our lives with heightened awareness.

Just as when the human body lacks sleep or  rest, the mind becomes muddled, thinking becomes fuzzy, which leads to slower decisions that are more prone to mistakes with far-reaching consequences.

Similarly, when our mind and spirit lack rest or have not “recharged” fully, our ability to analyze will be compromised, we would lack the wisdom to make proper spiritual decisions and to discern God’s will for important decisions in our lives.

Just as the human body is not a machine and cannot operate endlessly, our spiritual life is also the same.  Without regular realignment  and nourishment, we won’t be able to maintain and grow our spiritual life. The most basic realignment is to make time to pause and ponder on life, which enables us to move from the space of “survival” into the space of “living”, and to get our lives back on track.

Before embarking on His important mission, Jesus entered the wilderness, giving Himself and the Father sufficient time to be united in a quiet and sacred space.  Jesus becomes our best role model. We must understand that a life without sorting out and integration will not be in order but in chaos. When we are faced with a busy life and bothered by the distractions that come with it, it is difficult for us to make the right decisions for our lives.

Therefore, we need to learn to follow Jesus into the wilderness, to face ourselves and God, and to recognize our identity and our role.

Our encounters and connection with God can ease our mind and spiritual dryness, and allow the Holy Spirit to breathe in the breath of life into us again and rejuvenate our souls.

We have all experienced unexpected changes in our lives that forced us to make important decisions without being mentally prepared. However, it is often in these tough times that we realize who and what are the most important in our lives, which then drives us to make choices that can change the trajectory of our lives. Miraculously, these realizations in times of hardship and the decisions made afterwards usually bring positive changes to our lives, turning these originally dreadful moments into blessings in disguise.

These moments make us see the essence of life, prompting us to let go of the lesser things that had once gripped us, and instead aim for the most important things in life. In these helpless moments, we are able to see our own weaknesses and limitations, and truly realize that we cannot rely solely on our own abilities and wisdom, but need to rely on the power of God and His grace to live fully the life that our Heavenly Father has given us.

Jesus, through His own example, reminds us not to wait until the alarm of life goes off that forces us to make inevitable and critical decisions.  If we, like Jesus, can regularly “enter the wilderness”, return to the basics of life and see the focus of our lives clearly, then we can face ourselves and God with complete honesty. We will then be able to let go of unnecessary burdens more easily, return to simplicity, and live more lightly. Let us dwell in the Holy Spirit to reclaim our freedom and vitality, so as to respond actively to God’s invitations and promptings in every moment of our lives.

Reflection

Do you feel like you are living a life with full awareness? What are the main reasons that cause you to live your life without being fully awake?

Please reflect on your life and recall some critical or unexpected events where you had to make important decisions urgently. During those times, who and what things did you find were the most important in your life?

After going through today’s reflection, please ask God to reveal to you in your prayers what you can learn from Jesus’ experience of “entering into the wilderness”.

Today’s Prayer

Merciful Abba Father, thank You for reminding me again today what the most important thing in my life is and what I truly need. It is not any external possessions, my experiences or wisdom, or even the abilities that You have granted me; but rather, it is a life I can live with full awareness, and to remain connected with You.

Please help me to always remember that if even our Lord Jesus Christ needed to receive His strength and wisdom from You, how much more do I need to rely on You? Heavenly Father, now I humbly declare that You are the King of my life. Let me live solely by the graces that You have bestowed upon me. I pray in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

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Thank you for participating in this 40-day Lenten spiritual journey, I thirst. We hope you have been inspired and have benefitted from it! For the spiritual benefit of all of you, Fountain of Love and Life devotes a lot of time and effort in producing various spiritual projects every year, and all our ministries are sustained by the generous donations of our supporters. We hope you will support us with prayers and donations. Please make an online donation using the button at the top of the website Lent.FLL.cc. Thank you very much for your support. God bless!

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