Is 60:1-6 Ps 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-13

Eph 3:2-3, 5-6 Mt 2:1-12

The bush, though on fire, was not consumed. (Exodus 3:2) What a sight this burning bush must have been to Moses! But what exactly was it? One explanation is that this fire signified God’s desire that everyone worship him alone (Deuteronomy 4:24). He wants to burn away all the other “gods” that we have set up in his place. Another explanation is that this fire represents God’s judgment against sin. To those who repent, it is a cleansing fire, but to those who turn away, it is a condemning fire. The fact that the fire engulfed the bush but did not burn it away gives us great hope. A third explanation focuses on how God chose an everyday item from the natural world—an ordinary bush—to display his glory. This explanation tells us that God is present everywhere. It also points us to the fire of the Holy Spirit, who can transform us—ordinary people—into the image of God (Acts 2:3-4). Lent is a time when God wants to purify us. It’s a time when he tells us that he wants us to have no false gods before him (Exodus 20:3). Lent is a perfect time for us to come to the Lord and ask him to burn away our sins through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.Lent is also the perfect time for us to invite the fire of the Holy Spirit into our hearts so that we can be a source of blessing to the people we meet. Let’s make it a point this Lent to ask Jesus to send his fire to purify our hearts and empower our lives. Let’s ask him to set us on fire for him and his Church!