We must remember that temptation is part of the human reality.
Christ was led into the wilderness following His baptism and there He was tempted.
We now enter into Lent with high hopes, but may we remember that we will be tempted and thus may we remain on guard.
Catechism of the Council of Trent: “Men are tempted for an evil purpose, when they are impelled to sin or destruction; and this is the peculiar province of the devil; for he tempts mankind with the view of deceiving and precipitating them into ruin; and, therefore, is he called in Scripture, the Tempter.”
1 Peter: “Be sober, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking some one to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith.”
Despite temptation may we continue to set our sight upon the cross and journey towards it.
In doing this we will come to resist our advisory, the devil, and remain on watch against him.
When we fall under the weight of temptation and thus enter into sin may we remember Christ who in the course of the "Stations of the Cross" falls under the cross's weight on three occasions.
Despite falling under it's weight He continued to get up and journey forward.
It is for this reason that we ought to taken Lent seriously.
Through Lent we have the opportunity to journey towards Christ and thus abandon all practices which keep us from making this journey.
We journey towards Him through practices such as prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.
These practices assist us because they purge from our midst our disordered passions and reorient our mind towards God.
Our Responsorial Psalm, Psalm 91, proclaims unto us that we are to remain under the Shadow of the Almighty.
Under this Shadow we will come to discover assistance in the midst of temptation.
Under this Shadow we will come to proclaim three truths of God with the full confidence of our heart: "Our protector, our refuge, and our God."
Our protector for sin is real and thus trust in God and His mercy will keep us from falling into the state of mortal sin which robs our soul of sanctifying grace.
Our refuge because in times of trial we will have a place to go in order that we may be kept safe from that which wishes to do us harm.
Our God because through the course of trusting in Him and purging from our midst our relationship to sin we will be able to see Him as He is in the Kingdom of Heaven.
So as we head into Lent for this 40 day period of fasting and prayer may we come to trust in these three truths concerning God.
May we find ways to increase our prayer during this season: (1) Praying the Rosary especially the Sorrowful mysteries, (2) Praying the Stations of the Cross especially on Fridays when we call to mind the events of the Lord’s Passion, (3) Praying with Holy Scripture especially placing our focus upon the Passion accounts, (4) Sacrificing time to spend time with Jesus in our adoration chapel, or (5) Reading a book of spiritual value.
May we find ways to fast because in doing so we purge the voice of Satan from our midst and redirect our mind back towards God. We can fast from food or something which we love. In doing so we are moving towards the end which is a relationship with God.
Through almsgiving we partake in penance and thus grow in fraternal charity where we can detach ourself from that which we hold onto and finally be able to love our neighbor as one created in the image and likeness of God the Father.
Finally may we make use of the Sacraments. The Sacraments assist us in our battle against temptation. Make use of the Sacrament of Confession for through it God’s mercy is encountered through the forgiveness of sins. Receive the Holy Eucharist in the state of grace and thus receive protection against the temptations which give rise in daily life.
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