Suffering Along with Jesus in the Desert
- T. M. Gaouette
- 5 days ago
- 2 min read
In the Gospel of Luke, we are told that for forty days Jesus remained in the desert, fasting and praying. When He grew extremely hungry, the devil tried to tempt Jesus in His vulnerable state, but Jesus prevailed. He remained strong and steadfast and loyal to His Father.
When trying to come up with a Lenten story for the Catholic Teen Books short story anthology Ashes: Visible & Invisible, I immediately thought about Jesus’ forty days in the desert, because it is literally a guide to what Lent is all about: a time of prayer and fasting. But more than that, it is a teaching moment for all of us on how to get through the dark times in our lives.
My short story “Bread Alone” is a reflection of Jesus’ experience in the desert. In this story, Ethan is also tempted during his time of personal suffering. He has his moment in the desert during Lent, when he feels as if all is lost and he is so close to giving in to temptation. But like Jesus, Ethan holds on. And with the help of his angel, he is reminded of Jesus’ passion through the Stations of the Cross, and he too learns how to prevail.
Don’t we have those moments too? This is why I wrote “Bread Alone.”
When everything feels dark and broken . . . When loneliness sucks the life out of us and hope is
lost . . . In those moments, the devil entices us. He deceives us with his lies, pretending to help with what we feel is lacking in our lives but secretly trying to destroy our soul.
Like Jesus' experience in the desert, the devil uses our moments of weakness and vulnerability to guide us away from God. And he does it by tempting us with what we’re so desperately hungry for. But even though the Truth can be hard to find in these moments, it’s always there. Jesus is always there. We can prevail if we hold strong to Our Lord, reminding ourselves of His love and great mercy, and that in His time and with His strength, all will be well.
“Bread Alone” is a story that I hope will remind us of Jesus’ struggle, and in turn, remind us that our anguish brings us closer to Him.
How do you get through the dark moments in your life? How do you draw closer to God during Lent?
Join us on April 2nd for our final reflection with Theresa Linden and her story, Prepare the Way.
About the author: T.M. Gaouette is a wife, home-school mom, freelance writer, blogger, and fiction novelist. She was born in Africa, brought up in London, and is now living in New England, where she raises goats with her husband and four children. A former contributing blogger for Project Inspired, Gaouette is dedicated to glorifying God through her writing and fictional stories for teens and young adults.
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