In the Desert
“The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert,
and he remained in the desert for forty days,
tempted by Satan.
He was among wild beasts,
and the angels ministered to him.”Mark 1:12-13
Do you remember your baptism? Pope Francis said that if we do not know when we were baptized, we ought to find out, remember it, and celebrate it because it was the day we became a child of God and an heir to the Kingdom. It is this “gateway sacrament” that enables us to live a life of faith, a life that shares in the divine life of the Trinity, a life that is sustained by prayer.
The first thing Jesus does after his baptism is pray. We are told that he was driven into the desert by the Spirit where He stayed and fasted for forty days and was tempted by Satan. This time of communion with the Father sustained the Son even in the face of temptation. In the other synoptic accounts we read of the words exchanged between Jesus and the devil and it was with Scripture that Jesus rebukes the devil. Although the devil quotes Scripture, he is no match for the Incarnate Word that stood before him. The eternal word of God is effective and performative. A life of prayer is a life rooted in this Word. It is this Word that will protect us from the lures of the devil. Mark also tells us that “angels ministered to him.” When we are immersed in prayer and live a life that is rooted in our relationship with God, we will come to experience more fully the hand of God working in our lives, the moments when the angels of God minister to us.
Just as Jesus knew who He was before the devil we too ought to know who we are. Jesus knew He was the Son of the Father and that nothing He did was apart from Him. Likewise we must always remember that by the gift of our baptism we have become beloved sons and daughters of the Father. Let us never forget that. Let us never cease to be in communion with the Father in prayer.
As Christians the desert is a place that we must go. Just as Christ went so must we. A life rooted in prayer is a life that leads us not away from the desert but rather through it courageously. Even when we find ourselves in the middle of the wildernesses and deserts of our lives and the devil stands before us, we have no fear because the Father is with us and He sends His angels to minister to us.
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