Monday for the Second Week of Lent
For Saint Mark account of di time wey Jesus spend for desert, e talk say “E dey among wild animals…” (Mark 1:13). For di beginning, when God create heaven and earth, “animals” no be “wild animals.” Dem dey completely gentle, and everything wey God create dey live together for perfect peace.
Since Jesus get plenty time for prayer and meditation inside di desert, E go don allow wetin E see for di life of these wild animals remind Am of how things wey God create no dey in order again. For God original plan, inside di Garden of Eden, animals no dey hunt other animals chop, and no animal be food wey another animal dey hunt. God dey provide for dem. But since di fall of Adam and Eve affect everything wey God create, even animals now dey suffer di effects of this world wey sin don spoil. Na so animals dey die, dem dey chop one another, and dem dey suffer sickness, hunger and violence. Di natural urge wey dem get to stay alive dey show something like di way all of us dey tend to put only our own interest first for life. These things no dey for di beginning of time, before di effects of Original Sin.
Imagine wetin e be like when Jesus come face to face with wild animals wey dey follow their natural urges, dey chop one another as food, and wey dem dey kill; dead bodies wey dey rot for heat, and even di few plants wey dey struggle to survive as dem dey dry up. Even though animals no fit make moral choices, di disorder for nature wey don affect dem go don give our Lord chance to use wetin E see with His own eyes reflect on di effects of Original Sin. As E dey reflect on these effects, E go don long for this whole world wey sin don spoil to change completely into di New Creation wey E come establish. E go don look forward to di glorious New Heaven and New Earth when di “wolf go be guest of di lamb, di leopard go lie down with di young goat; Di calf and di young lion go chop grass together, with one small pikin to guide dem” (Isaiah 11:6). E go don long for that future time when plants go grow and bear fruit in abundance wey plenty well-well, sickness and death among animals wey no get power to reason and among plants go stop, and nature itself go change in a way wey go pass even di plenty and peace wey dey for di Garden of Eden.
Even though God make everything in His image and likeness, “everything wey God create dey groan with labour pains even till now” as e dey wait for redemption (see Romans 8:22). So, even as wetin God create fine reach, di world of animals, different kinds of land and scenery, and plants no dey reflect God perfectly. Jesus go don know this truth very well, because His mind know perfectly not only di state of Original Innocence inside di Garden of Eden, but also how di world wey God create go change for future into something wey get far more glory and wey go reflect God di Creator far better.
Today, reflect on di beauty of wetin God create as you dey come across am inside this world wey sin don spoil. First, try see how wetin God create dey reflect di beauty of God di Creator. Then try imagine how everything wey God create go be when di New Heaven and New Earth don dey at di end of time. Di “animals” no go be “wild” again. Everything go dey live together for perfect peace, di land go produce in abundance wey plenty well-well, no animal go dey hunt another animal chop, and no animal go be food for another. Through di New World wey God go establish, E go show Himself to us perfectly.
Lord of Creation, even though di way You create everything dey perfect, di sin of Adam and Eve bring disorder. As I dey live this life, help me look beyond di disorder wey dey now among wetin You create, so that I fit find You as everything wey You create dey reflect You. Help me also to look forward to that glorious day wey dey come, when everything for this world go become new, everything go live together for peace again, sickness no go dey again, and Your glory and beauty go show for everything wey You create. Jesus, na You I trust.
See also: Dei Eleven: 40 Days for di Foot of di Cross