“And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’ And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness” (Mark 1:11-12).
Jesus is baptized and named the Beloved and then is immediately driven to the wilderness. Comforting or disturbing, this is life. From one moment to the next, we are celebrating a wedding, then grieving a loved one not present. We are feeling calm, cool, and collected, and then are thrown off balance by a horrible news report. We are bathing in the refreshing waters of baptism, then suddenly driven out into the wilderness.
Life is changing and we are changing. We are called to places we would never choose. We suffer and wonder if we’ll make it. We stretch and grow stronger. In all of this a voice calls out from heaven, “You are my beloved children.” We remember how water splashed on us has claimed each one of us forever. Wherever we are on the timeline of life, God claims us.
This message is excerpted from the faith reflection “We are claimed in the wilderness” by Joy McDonald Coltvet from the March 19, 2020, Cafe online magazine. Today is the first Sunday in Lent.
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