Isaiah is the prophet I most associate with Lent. It is well known among Scripture scholars that the huge book of Isaiah in the Old Testament, which made up of 66 chapters, is not just the writings of one prophet. The writings of the 8th-century prophet Isaiah comprise the first thirty-nine chapters of this book. The remaining chapters come from two other prophets, known as the 2nd and 3rd Isaiah. While the writings of the first part of Isaiah concentrate on the call to conversion, God’s promise of salvation is the main message of the latter part of the book. Today, Isaiah communicates a message of God’s abundant generosity, how his plans will not be frustrated. The creative and nurturing work of our loving God is compared to the rain and the snow that fall from the sky to the earth, how the rain and the snow will not be returned until it nurtures the earth with its moisture, just as the rain and snow give seed to the farmer and bread for humanity to eat. Later in the Gospels, Jesus talks about how seeds can fall of barren ground or rocks or inhospitable soil, not giving them a chance to grow. We can be that inhospitable ground for God’s word when we close ourselves off from his message or when we try to manipulate his message for own benefit. God wants his word to do his will for us in our lives. We live in a world where we are bombarded with a lot of words and a lot of messages, some of which reinforce and explain God’s word, but some of which are against God’s word and against the values of the Gospel. The beginning of our Lenten journey is a good time for us to discern if we are provide a fertile environment for God’s word in our lives. It is not enough for us to know God’s word. We are called to ponder it in our hearts.
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