Lent is walking with Christ

40 Shades of Lent by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Wednesday, Second Week in Lent, 04 March 2026
Jeremiah 18:18-20     + + +     Matthew 20:17-28

How lovely is our scene 
today, Lord Jesus,
of you walking towards Jerusalem:
it must have been so dusty
and dirty at that time;
I won't be surprised at all
at how everybody must be
thinking of reaching home,
finding a place for comfort
and ease but here you are,
Lord, reminding the Twelve
and us today of your coming
passion, death and resurrection.

How amazing, Jesus
that as we follow you,
walking with you in this
journey and mission,
you remind us of our own
sufferings but unfortunately,
thoughts of glory seep into our
minds like that day when 
the mother of James and John
made that request of honor and
prestige by your side;
the same thing is very true
during the time of Jeremiah
the Prophet: he was there in the
heat and dirt of the city of
Jerusalem, proclaiming God's
words of conversion and there,
just like today, are the voices 
and thoughts of us thinking of doing
away with pain and suffering,
of insisting on our own thoughts
and desires for fame and glory
without realizing the more
essential realities in life.

O dear Jesus,
let me continue to walk
your path of the Cross,
let me remain in your journey
of Lent,
of life
by your side,
forgetting my self,
taking my cross,
and following you alone.

You have given me
with so much, Jesus
and I have given so little;
take whatever I still keep
to myself when I thought I
have surrendered completely
to you; let me see what you see,
love whom you love,
care for those you care
as we continue together
in this road to Jerusalem.
Amen.