Our gospel passage for today, the first Sunday in the season of Lent, tells us that: "When the devil had finished every test, he departed from [Jesus] until an opportune time." Take some time to think about how that resonates in your life. What might the adversary consider an opportune time to visit you? When are you most vulnerable to wandering away from God, to straying down one rabbit hole or another? Perhaps it's when you're tired, or stressed, or angry, or frustrated, or hungry. For sure, those are red flags for me, calling me to pay attention to what's going on in my life deep within. Such an exercise might be a good practice to take on as a Lenten discipline.

Another good practice could be noticing what tends to create opportune times for God to make the Divine Presence known in your life? Things like spending time with the Beloved in prayer and meditation, taking a walk paying attention to God's presence in creation, or journaling about what is going on in the world around you, might be a good place to start. Perhaps being kind to those who are struggling, being gentle with those who are frustrated or irritated, being patient with those who are impatient, would create opportune times for the Holy One to reach into your heart. What other ways comes to mind that you might use to welcome the Beloved?

I'm sure that the more time and energy we devote to creating opportune times for God to work in our hearts and minds, the fewer opportune times the adversary will find to try to distract or derail us. Try it and see for yourself.