“For this reason it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his descendants, not only to the adherents of the law but also to those who share the faith of Abraham (for he is the father of all of us, as it is written, ‘I have made you the father of many nations’)—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. Hoping against hope, he believed that he would become ‘the father of many nations’, according to what was said, ‘So numerous shall your descendants be.’”  (Romans 4:16-18)  The story of Abraham is a fitting one for us as we continue our Lenten journey.  Abraham, the great “knight of faith” causes us to remember that the life to which you and I are called is not merely difficult, it is impossible.   He is our forebear in that he models for us the life that trusts God to do that which we cannot do.  The greatest glory of the Lenten season is that we have been invited to embark on a journey which we simply cannot complete in our own strength.  We walk the path in faith, trusting in the same One who called Abraham.  And this journey ends in a cross and an empty grave.  I cannot imagine a better example of the place in which God “gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.”  If you are like me, you know that you don’t journey perfectly and that your faith does wax and wane.  And yet we remain on the road, moving forward, inviting others to join us as we travel to that place where the ultimate victory of life over death and forgiveness of sin has been won.