2nd Sunday of Lent "A"

Today is the second Sunday of Lent. Lent is the season for prayer, fasting, abstinence and alms-giving. And for today, we have our Gospel (Matthew 17:1-9) which reminds us of the importance of prayer.
First, Jesus prays. He does not only pray but he has a favorite place to pray –a mountain.
Second, Jesus takes with him Peter, James and John and leads them up a high mountain. Here Jesus wants to build a community of disciples who pray. This means that they seal their relationship with prayer and they are related to each other though prayer.
Third, Jesus is transfigured before the three. There is a change in the appearance of Jesus. This is the effect of prayer. When you sincerely pray, your prayer radiates that what is inside you will be manifested outside you. This is what love means too. Yes, a person can love, but if he is unable to communicate such love, it will not reflect on the appearance of the person.
Fourth, there is distraction whenever you pray. You see Peter is distracted when he sees Jesus is transfigured. He forgets to focus on what Jesus wants them to do on a mountain –that is to pray.
Fifth, a voice from heaven is heard saying “Listen to him” (to Jesus). It means that we have to focus on our prayer. We do not need to say something but to allow God to speak to us.
Then at the end of the Gospel, Jesus told them about his impending death. Here it reminds us that when a person prays, he can be able to accept anything even death. Jesus tells us that we can pray before we die, and we can pray while dying. Our prayer will help us accept whatever future there may be for us. So my dear friends, let us always pray!