Millennial Lenten Reflections: Building Anticipation

Editor’s Note: The following is part of Millennial Lenten Reflections, a blog series in collaboration with Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good. Short reflections on the day’s readings, written by young adults from FMS and other organizations, will be posted everyday throughout Lent. 

For Christians all over the world, Lent is a season of prayer, almsgiving, penance, and repentance. In short, it is a time of preparation.

In the scripture prior to today’s Gospel reading we see Jesus proclaim, in a sense, his mission statement.

Jesus spoke of extending the boundaries of his mission past what the crowd had anticipated. The people of his hometown, Nazareth, wanted to see miracles done in their own backyard. I don’t blame them.

These people had been waiting for the promised Messiah to come, just as generations had before them. At some point, however, the crowd lost sight. Their preparation had become corrupted and we have something to learn from them.

Lent is a time to “forfeit”, a time to work on our posture of waiting in anticipation for the coming of Christ. This is why Lent is so special.

In this Lenten season, do the practices you participate in re-center you? Would you be ready and willing to welcome Jesus in his hometown?

What will your response be when Jesus meets you this Lenten season in unexpected ways?

Cassandra Kienbaum is a follower of Christ, advocate for the homeless, the Programs Assistant at Catholic Volunteer Network, and a lover of craft beer.