God is also a transcendent deity whose grandeur and majesty command our attention and our reverence.

Perhaps we should ask, with the Russian Orthodox monk and theologian Anthony Bloom, “When we think of the absence of God, is it not worthwhile to ask ourselves whom we blame for it?”

Perhaps as we prepare for the Holy Week that is to come, we will trust fully in God, knowing that whatever our circumstances, we need fear no evil, “for you are with me.”

God is conducting a deep spiritual analysis of each of us, seeking to determine the integrity of our materials and process. Are we ready?

Engulfed in sorrow or distress, we may not feel his presence, but he is there nonetheless, walking through that deep dark valley and surrounding us with his love.

If we truly want to be disciples of God, we must subjugate our proud selves to his will and bow down in obedience.

Am I doing everything I can, in my own little corner, to safeguard and protect “this blessed plot, this earth, this realm?"

As we feel buffeted by the shaking and plunging of the world around us, let us take a pause for renewal in the strength and grace of God by spending a few quiet moments in prayer.

God does not need our external acts of piety. Rather, he asks us to sacrifice our arrogance, our insistence on autonomy, our selfishness, our fickleness, all of our shortcomings, upon his altar.

As we draw near the halfway mark of Lent, it would behoove us to reflect upon which gods we are honoring, admiring and loving more than God who gave us life. And then to show them the door.