“Filled with the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, to be tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when they were over he was hungry.” The scripture readings during the great and holy season of Lent point us to the profound reality of the suffering love of God that desires nothing more than to transform the unfortunate consequence of sin and disobedience into the gracious and eternal reward of happiness and eternal peace. God’s love and mercy simply seek to restore and reunite what was lost through death and division back to the Father. God wants us to return and come home to him. The Passion of Christ shows us just how much God loves and desires us. Jesus’ Passion reflects the greatest expression of God’s infinite love and divine mercy. Up to this point, the world has never really known or seen how much God desires to be with us. On the Cross, God’s unfathomable divine love, patient suffering, and sacrificial self offering shine forth in his Only Begotten Son, Jesus. On the Cross, Jesus freely and lovingly restores the precious gift of life lost through  selfish deception, sin and darkness. Now eternal life is given and made possible through the gratuitous gift of Christ on the Cross. For our sake, Jesus remained vulnerable to the Father and vulnerable to all of humanity throughout his whole life. From the moment he understood the Father’s plan to the moment he fulfilled it on the Cross, Jesus remained faithful to the Father’s will. Even through his Death and Resurrection and still today during every Eucharistic Celebration, Jesus remains faithful to the Father’s will. In his birth and throughout his ministry even when he was tempted, persecuted and mocked, Jesus remained obedient to the Father. In obedience, trust and mercy, Jesus showed us his love. He loved us in the beginning, throughout his life, in his death and in Heaven. Jesus still loves us today and for evermore. He remained totally abandoned, entrusted and committed to the Father, to his Divine Will and to his Divine Plan. Without worries, without reservation, without concern, without failing, Jesus trustingly and lovingly placed everything in the Father’s hands, including his very self, his life, his spirit, his soul. Imagine being totally entrusted to the Father and his Divine Will. Imagine being protected, loved, cared for, rested, without worries and at peace for all eternity. Jesus comes to bring us the peace of God’s kingdom. Can we join his journey by denying ourselves, taking up our cross and following him? Can we pray in confidence, into your hands Lord, I commend my life, my spirit, my all?