Today falls Septuagesima Sunday which stands nine Sundays prior to the celebration of Easter. With that we are only seventeen days away from Ash Wednesday and the start of the Lenten season. For the next three Sundays our liturgical color will be violet which serves as a reminder of our need to undergo penance.
Our Epistle takes up this theme by reminding us that “every athlete exercise discipline in every way. They do it to win a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one.” Our goal cannot be the passing things of this world, but rather it must be the Kingdom of Heaven. This is a kingdom which will never pass away. As an athlete trains to excel at a given sport, so must we as Christians strive to excel in living a life of virtue.
If we are to put vice to rest and go out in pursuit of virtue then we must come to see the importance of discipline. During the season of Lent we are given the perfect opportunity to grow in such a manner. Nevertheless, we do not always allow ourself to be properly prepared. It so easy to wander into Lent, and even throughout this life on earth, without first undergoing proper preparation. Lent is not just another season, but it is an avenue which leads towards Easter and an encounter with the Risen Lord.
With that these final days which lay ahead, before entering into this season, should be used to our advantage. We should begin to discern how we will grow in virtue through practices such as prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. Some enter into Lent without a true goal set in sight and thus when they come to celebrate Easter no change has taken place in their life. We cannot allow this to be said of us for our Blessed Lord is always inviting us to enter more fully into this reality.
