Encouragement

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“The mountains and hills may crumble, but my love for you will never end.”- Isaiah 54:10

We have entered into the spiritual and holy season of Lent. This is a time for reflection, fasting, repentance, prayer and meditation. It is a season where we joyfully return to the Lord.
The ashes sprinkled on our foreheads at the start of Lent are a reminder of God’s own words in the book of Genesis 2:7 “Dust Thou Art, and Unto Dust Shall Thou Return.”

During this solemn season of Lent, there are various hymns which beautifully convey our closeness and holiness to God:-

1)“Come Back to me with all your heart, don’t let fear keep us apart; Long have I waited for your coming home to me and living deeply our new life.”
– This hymn encompasses the meaning of Lent where God is earnestly and eagerly awaiting our return back to him. He is longing for our love. We have to just take the necessary steps towards Him. He has waited for too long.

2)“O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder, Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made; Then sings my soul, My Saviour God, to Thee, How great Thou art.
And when I think, that God, His Son not sparing; Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in; That on the Cross, my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died to take away my sin."
– We praise God not just for his splendid creation of Heaven and Earth but also marvel at the astonishing gift of His only begotten Son nailed to the Cross and made to pay the price of the sins of mankind; the Sacrificial Lamb who meekly died for the salvation of the human race.

3)“Lay your hands gently upon us, Let their touch render your peace, Let them bring You forgiveness and healing, You desire to heal all our illness, Lay your hands, gently lay your hands.”
– This hymn can be said as a wonderful healing prayer not only for ourselves but for others as well. We are all called to be Prophets and by the power of the Holy Spirit within us, we can lay our hands on others and pray to God for their healing.

4)“Just a closer walk with Thee, Grant it, Jesus, is my plea, Daily walking close to Thee, Let it be, dear Lord, let it be... Teach me love as you did love, it’s not easy dear Lord but let it be.”
– This hymn reminds us of how close to God we really should be at all times. There is another significant verse in this hymn – “When my feeble life is o’er, Time for me will be no more; Guide me gently, safely o’er To Thy kingdom shore, to Thy shore.”
–This scene can be best visualized with Jesus waiting at the heavenly shore to welcome us when we reach the golden sands of heaven.

5)“Here I am, Lord. Is it I, Lord? I have heard you calling in the night.
I will go, Lord, if you lead me. I will hold your people in my heart.”
–This hymn proves our willingness to serve the Lord, to be ready to undertake his mission, to bring back to his flock, the people that have been led astray.
They all belong to the Father and are precious to Him, He does not desire that any of them should be lost and it is our responsibility to save as many as we can.

6)“I will never forget you, I have carved you on the palm of my Hand.”
– The Lord can never forsake us, even the hairs on our head are all counted, our names are written on His heart. He has created each and every one of us with infinite care and love. We belong to him.

7)“Mary Immaculate, Star of the morning; Bend from your throne at the voice of our crying. Look to this earth where your footsteps have trod. Stretch out your arms to us, living and dying, Mary Immaculate, Mother of God.”
–This is a plea to our Lady to help us in our times of need, to intercede to her Son on our behalf. Mother Mary having walked The Way of the Cross with her Son Jesus can identify with our sufferings here on earth.

8)“Lord, I offer my days to you, Lifting my praise to you, As a pleasing sacrifice. Lord, I offer you my Life.”
– This line is not only a reminder to make God a part of our days in all that we do but also a startling reality that we are a part of His Days. We have to render daily thanks for every blessing that we receive from Him.

9)“I am the Bread of Life, He who comes to me shall not hunger, he who believes in me shall not thirst, If you eat of this bread, you shall live forever, And I will raise him up on the last day.”
–Jesus is the spiritual food needed to nourish our souls in this life and beyond, when we partake in His sacrifice on Calvary at every mass, we have a part in Him. Without Him, we are nothing. Every time we attend Mass, we never walk out of the church empty handed; God’s grace and blessings follow us unfailingly. What a joy to accumulate as many graces in our store house of blessings.!

10)“When my way grows drear precious Lord linger near, When my life is almost gone, Hear my cry, hear my call, Hold my hand lest I fall. Take my hand precious Lord, lead me home.”
– This hymn is an assurance that at the end of our journey, the Lord will lead us home safely after having accomplished our mission here on earth. He is the Light which will guide us through the darkness of death into a bright everlasting life.

Let us hold dear this blessed season of Lent where we contemplate the Lord’s Passion and Death until His Glorious Resurrection at Easter.

Maria Franco

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