Forty Days

"The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him. " - Mark 1:12-13

Forty days is a long time to do anything. Many people take up the practice of giving something up during the forty days of lent. Others use the forty days to spend more time focusing on God. Noah spent this time huddled inside a large boat with animals waiting out a storm (which, thankfully, was followed by a promise that such disaster would never happen again!).

Jesus spent the forty days being subject to a storm of temptation from Satan. While Mark doesn't go into detail about this storm, Matthew describes the spiritual and physical tests endured by Jesus - through his own devotion to his Father (fasting), and through the challenges issued by Satan. And while our choices of fasting and self-denial during these forty days may not be as epic as Jesus's, they do have a very direct purpose - to provide a reminder during the day of what Jesus did for us... and at times we probably would be thinking of something else.

Something to think about...