For millions of Christians around the world, Feb. 17 this year marks the beginning of Lent, the annual season of almsgiving, self-examination and repentance. Lent prepares us for the great feast of Easter. The fasting and acts of self-denial most of us make during Lent in food, drink and entertainment reflect a key truth about our faith. Christianity is incarnational. God’s word became flesh in the person of Jesus Christ. His death on the cross and his resurrection from the grave remind us that each human being — body and soul — was made by God, redeemed by Christ and destined for eternal life. For Catholics, Lent is a time when God invites all of us to enter into a deeper relationship with himself. Lent is our pilgrimage to Calvary, and beyond that, to Easter and abundant life. Jesus came to save us; to show us that our lives have meaning; that God loves us; that despite all our sins, no matter how dark, he treasures us as his sons and daughters; that suffering has a purpose; that each person no matter how infirm or disabled has dignity; and that death is never the end of who we are. All of us live much of our daily lives with an interior struggle. On the one hand, each of us is born with an ache for “something more.” We all have a natural longing for happiness, but we can’t be happy alone. We were made for wholeness, for friendship with one another, and for communion with our Creator. This is what Augustine means in his words from the Confessions: “Our hearts are restless, (God,) until they rest in thee.” Like Augustine, our hearts are restless for the joy which only friendship with God through Jesus Christ can bring. Lent is an invitation to dethrone the distractions that keep our hearts restless and empty. If we make room for the real King, he’ll do much more than fill the space. He’ll make us what he intended us to be: saints. So let’s live this Lent not as a burden, but as a joy, a way of refocusing ourselves on the one thing that really does matter eternally — friendship with God. Fr. Dan Taken from: https://catholicexchange.com/return-to-the-lord-this-lenten-season