Thursday of the Third Week
Lent invites us to listen—deeply, honestly, and courageously. In today’s reading from Jeremiah, God laments a people who hear His voice but do not act on it. This is not just an ancient critique; it is a mirror held up to our own lives. On college campuses, we are surrounded by voices—deadlines, expectations, activism, ambition, anxiety. Yet amid all that noise, God asks a simple thing: “Walk in all the ways that I command you.”
Psalm 95 echoes this call: “If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” Hardened hearts can look like burnout, cynicism, or disengagement—common realities for students juggling pressures, faculty navigating institutional demands, and staff carrying unseen burdens. Lent challenges us to pause and soften, to resist the temptation to numb ourselves spiritually.
In the Gospel, Jesus reminds us that neutrality is not an option: “Whoever is not with me is against me.” Lent is not about perfection but about choosing—again and again—to stand with Christ.
As a campus community, may this season help us reclaim attentiveness, integrity, and courage, so that hearing God’s voice leads us to lives of justice, compassion, and hope, and in the spirit of the Society of St. Edmund, let us know, love, and serve God through the lives we lead on and off campus.
Prayer
Dear Lord, As we continue our Lenten journey, let us connect with the ways that you have called us to walk, and be a model to encourage others to choose Your ways over the ways of the world. Those times where we may experience exhaustion, let us remember to turn to you for strength and encouragement. As we journey toward Good Friday, and eventually Easter, let us never forget that you walk with us, and have experienced these challenges and joys as well.
Dr. Ansel Augustine
Saint Michael’s College Board of Trustees
First Reading: Jeremiah 7:23-28
Psalm 95:1-2, 6-9
Gospel: Luke 11:14-23
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