Monday of the First Week in Lent

Have you ever talked to someone who describes their “god” as a bit too… undemanding? There seems to be a lot of that going around these days. Even some Christians would like to have us all believe in a light and fluffy Jesus. Well, there certainly are loving and kind words from the Lord, but we ought not trim away the tough and challenging words. We see these two aspects of our faith in Jesus himself, at His Baptism. Note the pleasant, soft and downy Holy Spirit that gently descends upon Jesus quickly turns into a “driver”, sending Jesus out into the wilderness. I don’t know many who would desire the wilderness, especially if they knew the devil was out there!
Martin Luther wrote an interesting line in his book The Bondage of the Will. If I remember correctly, he said, “Everyone’s will is bound—either by the Holy Spirit, or something else!” That idea has stuck with me, and I think it can also be applied to being “driven”. Either we are driven by the Holy Spirit, or something else!
Doesn’t that sound like a great Lenten walk? Taking time to evaluate what we are driven by—and shedding some drivers if they aren’t from the Holy Spirit! I don’t know about you, but there are plenty of worldly drivers, and worldly voices, working on me.
Worldly voices function with different principles than the principles of disciples. Survival of the fittest. Retaliation for wrongs. Get all you can rather than giving without any strings attached, etc. I would say that, most the time, you know when you meet a person that’s driven by worldly voices. They are perpetually skeptical, cynical, and suspicious of others. You might even call them bitter from the harassment of the voices.
Indeed, we don’t escape being driven, but our driver has a totally different set of principles. You do remember the Master’s principles, right? If you want to be first, you must be last. Turn the other cheek. Don’t hate your enemies, but love them. And the list goes on.
What is it that drives us, down deep in our souls? If we are exhausted, it’s probably not God! Let us find our wilderness, even though it’s the last place our self-interested voice, or the worldly voice, would want us to go. Let us find our wilderness, so that each one of us may be driven from our Baptisms into a closer walk with God and His calling for us!

Prayer: We invite You today, precious Holy Spirit, to not only rest on us in peace, but also to drive us. For we know that You care for us, that we will use this life to mature. We also know that Your kingdom is coming, and we want to be part of the work. So, drive us wherever You need us to serve this week. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Devotion written by the Rev. Dr. Jesse J. Abbott