ORLANDO  | This week we began the holy season of Lent. I find the days ahead of Ash Wednesday to be an important time to prepare for this season. We know that Lent calls us to pray, fast, and give alms.

It also invites us to deeper reflection. It encourages us to consider:

• What is God asking of me?

• What does God want me to know?

• How does He want me to grow during this time?

I wanted to share a few thoughts on how we can make the most of this period of preparation and reflection.

Feeding Our Souls

Lent draws us inward, and in a world that increasingly demands more of our attention, answering this call to return to our spiritual life can feel like a radical act. Still, it is a call we must answer.

Our souls require care. They must be nourished by the Word of God. Without this nourishment, it becomes all too easy to feel exhausted, worn down or irritable. We may be unable to see the error of our ways or to hear the ways God is speaking to us.

As Jesus tells the devil while being tempted in the desert during His 40 days of fasting:

“One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.” (Mt 4:4)

Lent reminds us to nourish our spirits and to return to our interior life.

A Journey Inward, Together

While Lent is a journey inward, it is not meant to be taken alone. We walk this path together as the Body of Christ. Gathering to pray and celebrate Mass strengthens us to continue on our Lenten journey, even when we feel weak or uncertain.

It reminds us that, as different as we may appear, we are all moving along the same path — toward God and His promise of everlasting life. After this season of solemn reflection, we are rewarded with the joy of Easter and the revelation of our salvation through Christ’s Resurrection.

In our Catholic schools, we observe Lent as a community in many ways, including Ash Wednesday services, Stations of the Cross, daily prayer, service projects, and classroom reflections on sacrifice and mercy. These practices help our students live out prayer, fasting, and almsgiving in meaningful, age-appropriate ways.

‘The Interior Castle’

Lent is the perfect time to reflect on the lessons of our great Christian mystics. I have been especially drawn to the teachings of St. Teresa of Ávila, Doctor of the Church and reformer of the Carmelite Order.

Through prayer and meditation, St. Teresa formed a deep union with God and emphasized the importance of entering into our own interiority. She writes:

“It is foolish to think that we will enter heaven without entering into ourselves.”

In her spiritual guide, “The Interior Castle” she compares the various states of the soul to seven mansions within a castle. Her writing is a powerful reminder of the depth of our souls and the profound rewards of the inward journey.

As we begin this Lenten season, I hope you find comfort in her prayer, as I do:

Let nothing disturb you,

Let nothing frighten you,

All things are passing away:

God never changes.

Patience obtains all things.

Whoever has God lacks nothing;

God alone suffices.

By Erika Wikstrom, Superintendent of Schools for the Diocese of Orlando