<p><em>As we begin Lent Jesus temptation offers us a meditation on being whole. In a world that communicates we are only worth the sum of our stuff and in a Church that officially teaches any sexual minority is damaged Jesus reminder that each of us is called to love with our whole selves may provide a welcome frame for our Lenten practice and a welcome reminder of the wholeness we are given and called to share!</em></p><div class=oldwebkit>&nbsp;</div><div class=oldwebkit><p>February 26 2023: First Sunday of Lent Year A</p><p>Genesis 2:7-9 3:1-7</p><p>Psalm 51:3-4 5-6 12-13 14 17</p><p>Romans 5:12-19</p><p>Matthew 4:1-11</p><h3>The Temptation to Love With Less Than All of Me</h3><p><em>A reflection by Ragan Schriver</em></p><p>Any loyal Jewish person in the time of Jesus could have easily answered the question what is the greatest commandment? They knew that it was the command to love God with heart soul and strength (Deuteronomy 6:5). Diving deeper into the Hebrew context of each of these aspects in which the person is commanded to love we see that heart represents the human persons deepest hungers the soul indicates a whole human life and strength means all a person uses to fortify themselves such as possessions that keep them safe like body armor or a home.</p><p>In the scenario described by Matthew in todays gospel we find Jesus in the midst of temptation. Not just any old temptation but temptation to violate the greatest command to not love God with all his heart soul or strength. The first temptation is that Jesus fill his hunger with a bunch of rocks. In so doing Jesus would satisfy his deepest hunger not with Gods presence but with something meaningless like stones on the side of the path. So often we are tempted to fill our deepest hunger not with the Spirit of our living God but with temporary fixes of empty calories mindless television vapid social media scrolling etc. Jesus turns from this temptation to focus on Loves capacity to satisfy his needs. Today we are called to embrace our hungers and fill them with the presence of God manifested all around us.</p><p>Secondly Jesus is tempted to throw himself off a cliff. Jesus knows he is commanded to love God with his whole soul/life and not to just give his life away to chance. You and I can follow this example by recognizing the gift of life we have been given. We can embrace the challenges of life and face our own reluctance to fully experience the gift of life by taking special days away from work with friends and family or by embracing special moments alone or with others where we can discover Gods Spirit in even the simplest aspects of our lives. Jesus gives his soul to God through intentionality. He will entrust his life and death to God not on a whim but when the time is right.</p><p>Lastly Jesus is tempted to trample on the relationship he has with the All-Loving God to receive wealth and property. We may feel particular solidarity with Jesus in this temptation these days&nbsp; when even our most basic needs come at such a high price. We might consider doing anything to have the resources to meet our financial goals. In the midst of this temptation Jesus actions remind us that our integrity and dignity are not found in the value of our stuff or strength as the great command calls it. Our value is in the breath God breathed into our nostrils at the beginning of creation. In the presence of the Spirit we find our true dignity and in that dignity all the strength we need.</p><p>In the gospels Jesus leads us through word deed and just his presence in the world. Today Jesus example reminds us how to refute our temptations. Knowing the greatest command is to love with all we have the greatest temptation is to avoid that love. Jesus doesnt run away from or deny the temptation he experiences but considers its validity and is able to move through and beyond to a fuller expression of the divine Love. As members of the LGBTQ+ community we may be particularly tempted to love with less than our whole selves especially since the Church has communicated to so many of us that we are not whole and that parts of our selves are not lovable. But in refuting these temptations we can also refute the lies that we are less than whole in our loving. We can refuse to be satisfied with less than authentic connection to others intentional life decisions and the generous sharing of our gifts even the gifts that others might not recognize.</p><p>As we begin this years Lenten journey it is most important that we recognize the temptation to avoid loving God with our whole heart soul and strength and to acknowledge the distractions of our appetites whims and fears. However by hungering for Gods Spirit using every gift in our lives to intentionally reflect the divine presence and sharing what we have with others each of us can overcome temptations to be less than our true selves and to love with anything less than all our whole heart mind and strength.</p></div><div class=oldwebkit>&nbsp;</div><p><em><strong>Ragan Schriver PsyD MSW</strong> is an associate professor and director of the MSSW program at the University of Tennessee College of Social Work and a long-time member of Dignity/Washington.</em></p><p style=text-align: center;><a class=btn btn-primary href=https://www.dignityusa.org/civicrm/mailing/subscribe>Subscribe to Breath of the Spirit</a></p>