Lent is with us again, and it offers to us the gift of the wilderness. The Bible points to the wilderness - the desert place - as a place of exploration and spiritual growth. The wilderness allows those who enter it to see themselves as they really are.

There are no hiding places, nothing that can be used to conceal. Whilst this can be a frightening concept, it is also powerfully liberating. For the wilderness is also a hopeful place, allowing us to let go of the past and to make a fresh start.

So as Christians, we begin our Lenten journey into the wilderness - a period of self-examination and reflection on what it means to be human: how it is that I am me.

One of the more painful realisations in any journey of self-discovery is that that we don't always get it right, have the proper motives, act with justice or love. We sin, to put it in Christian language.

Over the next few weeks of Lent, we're going to look at the seven deadly sins: gluttony, sloth, anger, greed, lust, envy and pride. And where better to begin than with gluttony - 'the desire to consume more than you need.'

We can see obvious gluttony in a society growing ever more obese. None of us, I guess, is happy with the amount of waste produced by our consumer society.

And we are becoming increasingly uncomfortable with the grossly unfair trading rules in the world that means the producers are paid a pittance to feed our consumer habits. 'Eyes too big for our bellies,' as my grandmother would put it.

So the first question posed this Lent is: 'Do I have simply what I need?'
And if the answer induces a sense of guilt at the sheer amount of excess you enjoy, there are things you can do.

The first is to give something up. Try to live without it this Lent and you may discover that you can live without it afterwards.
But the second is much more important.

I dare say that a large amount of the stuff you own, and the food you eat, was produced by people in the developing world for next to nothing. As powerful consumers we can change that.

Tomorrow, Fairtrade fortnight begins, the tenth anniversary of the Fairtrade movement. Part of the antidote to gluttony is self-disciplined shopping. Check where your food or clothing is sourced. Ask difficult questions of supermarket bosses. And refuse to buy the products of companies who will not treat their workers fairly.

This is what the prophet, Micah, from the Hebrew Scriptures, asked of the people:
You know what the Lord requires of you: to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8

And remember, throughout this Lenten journey, whatever you've done, wherever you are, however you feel, the truth remains: you are the beloved child of God.

Rev Sam McBratney

Week one: wilderness
Week two: sloth
Week three: envy
Week four: anger
Week five: greed and lust
Week six: pride