Pondering Thoughts of My Soul

Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, marks a time of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving to prepare for the celebration of Easter.  For me, it is a solemn time to reflect on past sins, go deep with God, and ponder Jesus, His resurrection, and the sacrifices He made for mankind.  One Lent, I made it a practice to read from the Bible every day.  That forty-day habit has become an almost daily ritual.  The more I read the Bible, the more I knew about God.  The more I knew, the more I wanted to know, and the Holy Spirit led me to a deeper understanding of God’s Word.  Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for the season of Lent and the opportunity of soul searching and contemplation of the past year.  Help me, Lord, to pray more fervently, to fast for self-discipline, and to give to the poor.  Help me to honor God in all I do.  In Jesus’ name, I pray.  Amen.  Matthew 4: 1-3: “Then Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.  He went without food for forty days and forty nights and later was hungry.  And the tempter came and said to Him, if you are God’s son, then command these stones be turned into bread.”