Easter: A Time to Reset Our “Life and Faith!”
Deacon Patrick Constantino
We need to look at our life from the beginning to the present so we can increase our faith and receive God’s graces forever!
Easter serves as a profound, symbolic, and practical time to reset, offering a pause for personal renewal, reflection, and new beginnings. It represents a do-over or reboot that encourages shifting focus from stress to joy, embracing hope, and nurturing mental or spiritual health.
Key Aspects of Easter Reset:
1—Spiritual Renewal. Christians view it as a time to reflect on Jesus’ resurrection, embracing grace and renewing the mind. Some of the things we can do are attend retreats, conferences, workshops, movies, read books, and many other things we can think of.
2—Mental and Emotional Pause. It acts as a moment to step away from daily noise, stress, and work pressure to focus on self-care. Our idea is to change our lives to do something rather than doing nothing! Change comes when we do something. At times, I like to get away from everything. I need quiet time by myself and enjoy music, songs, nature, beaches, and quiet places where I can pray my Rosary, say the Mysteries, and pray our Divine Mercy Chaplet every day.
Spiritual renewal of the mind is continuous, a daily process of transforming one’s worldview, thoughts, and attitudes to align with God’s Word rather than worldly patterns. It involves actively replacing lies with truth, allowing the Holy Spirit to rewire our thinking to reflect Christ.
This inner transformation leads to personal growth and spiritual maturity. Key aspects of this process include:
1. Constant Transformation: It is not a one-time event, but a day-by-day renewal.
2. Replacing Thought Patterns: Actively replacing negative, worldly, or fearful thoughts with the truth of scripture.
3. Actionable Steps: Regular Bible study, prayer, meditation on God’s Word, and memorizing scripture are essential practices.
4. Inner-Outward Change: Unlike behavior modification, this is an internal change of heart and mind that naturally results in new, godly actions.
5. Benefits: A renewal mind enables the ability to discern God’s will, find freedom from sinful habits, and live with peace rather than anxiety.
These are some of the scriptures that can help us reset and reboot our way of Life and change our Faith to receive God’s Graces! Romans 12:2: “Do not conform to this word, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind … ” Make up your mind to change and feel new with the Spirit! Ephesians 4:23: “ …to be renewed in the spirit of your minds.” When you believe in God, His Spirit will take care of you. 2 Corinthians 4:16: “ … yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” Just by reading scriptures and praying day by day, we are being renewed. My hope and prayers, suggestions, tools, and recommendations to you that these will help you with your resetting and rebooting your Life and Faith, so that in forty days and Holy Week, you can make the changes in your Life for the good of your Soul and Heart to love God more, yourselves and people around. Let us make it all new and rejoice this coming Easter Day! Rejoice and be glad, for you are renewed in the rising Lord on Easter Day and beyond! Happy Easter and God Bless! Jesus, I trust in you! Amen!
We begin Lent with Matthew 4: 1–11
At that time Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry. The tempter approached and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread.” He said in reply, “It is written: One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.”
Then the devil took him to the holy city, and made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written: He will command his angels concerning you and with their hands they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone.” Again it is written, You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.”
Then the devil took him up a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence, and he said to him, “All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me.” At this, Jesus said to him, “Get away, Satan! It is written: The Lord, your God, shall you worship and Him alone shall you serve.” Then the devil left him and, behold, angels came and ministered to him.
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ.
Today’s Gospel brings us into the desert with Jesus
Jesus willingly enters the wilderness and faces his own demise. By doing this, He shows us how to trust and place complete faith in our Lord. When we face adversity or struggle with things in our lives, often, they are very places where God is working most closely within us. Christ’s ability to persevere is truly a source of hope for us. By trusting in God’s plan, just as Jesus did, we can feel hope instead of despair, courage in moments of weakness and joy amid life’s most challenging struggles. As we begin our Easter journey and reset and reboot our self and others, let us not worry about the quantity of people we can change but the quality of people we can be examples to, and make them believe in our Lord Jesus Christ this Easter! Amen.
Deacon Patrick Constantino retired from active Ministry on July 1, 2022. He is still a Deacon in good standing with full faculties to perform all sacraments in the Diocesan of Honolulu Hawai‘i. Constantino has been ordained for thirty-seven years. He is the first Filipino Deacon in the Diocesan of Honolulu. Prior to his ordination, Constantino was in government—first appointed in 1966 as Assistant Sergeant of Arms by the Speaker of the House Elmer F. Cravalho. When Cravalho became Maui’s first Mayor, Constantino became his Executive Assistant—the first of Filipino ancestry. Later, Constantino became the first County Treasurer of Filipino ancestry and the first County Grants Administrator and Risk Manager of Filipino ancestry. Constantino is married to his lovely wife Corazon for sixty-four years. They are blessed with four children, eleven grandchildren, and fifteen great grandchildren.