I, and others, have said many times “don’t be so focused on the destination that the journey is not appreciated and enjoyed.” Preparation is a large part of any journey. If I think back over my life journey, the time I have spent in preparation is quite a significant chunk. Preparation for going to college, preparation for getting married, preparation for each new child welcomed, preparation for changes in career, preparation for guests coming to stay, preparation for travelling, preparation for dinner each night — the list could go on and on.
In today’s lectionary reading Jesus was on the brink of a change of career. Jesus is about to start ministry and feels compelled to take some time to prepare for it. In Mark’s version the story is minimal. The gospel merely states, “And the Spirit drove him out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him” (Mark 1:12-13).
Jesus took a few weeks of time to be alone to prepare for the momentous time ahead. The story does not give much detail about the wilderness location. In the past, I have talked about the possibility that when the gospel tells us that John the Baptizer came from the wilderness, he had been sent to be educated and trained by the Essene community located there. Maybe, it was to an Essene community that Jesus was driven for this time of preparation. It always puts me in mind of the quotation which is one of meditations in the Way of Living, (p. 390). “In Scetis, a brother went to see Abba Moses and begged him for a word. And the old man said: Go and sit in your cell, and your cell will teach you everything.” (in Thomas Merton)
I like to think that Jesus time of preparation in the wilderness was a rich experience. It was the very foundation — the bedrock— of his ministry. Jesus took time alone to prepare but was tended by angels, and by non-human friends.
It is so often the negative aspects of this passage and this season of Lent that are focused on — self-denial and deprivation. I think it is a mistake to make that the focus. In “Christian-speak”, which I dislike, a wilderness experience is often used to denote something bad in one’s life.
What do I mean by Christian-speak — a particular phrase or turn of speech that would only have meaning to those in the “club”. In certain circles it can become like a secret language, like a sign that one is an “insider”. Such a horrible concept —insiders and outsiders. I constantly have to watch my language to ensure I don’t fall into the trap of Christian-speak.
Personally, I don’t think that being ill, or being financially challenged or being lonely or facing a crisis can be attributed to the passage today. They are indeed situations which many will have experienced. However, if such things are equated to this so-called “wilderness experience” then we would have to say that all the poor, all the chronically sick people, all the people who have been lonely for years are spending their whole lives in the wilderness if the gospel is interpreted that way. People experiencing this sort of hardship may feel they are struggling constantly, but it cannot necessarily be claimed as a God-ordained spiritual experience.
I much prefer to think of the positive aspects of this passage, this Lent, which, in the cycle of the church’s calendar, is denoted as a time of preparation.
Maybe the question people ask each other shouldn’t be “what are you giving up for Lent?” but instead ask “what are you preparing for this Lent?”
It is an important question. The church’s cycle has given us these next few weeks to live it. Maybe preparation is towards a deepening spiritual journey.
Maybe it is for a preparation for baptism or ordination.
Maybe it is for a big change in life.
Maybe it is for peace and strength in one’s life.
Or maybe, it is simply to take time to reflect on the ever-present cycle of life and death and life and death and life
My hope is that Lent will be a positive experience this year for all who undertake the journey. My hope is that as each person takes time for preparation they will experience being comforted by non-human friends and tended to by angels — in whatever form that takes.
