Thoughts Along the Journey

" 'Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?' Jesus said to them in reply, 'Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do.' " Luke 5:30b-31 Someone was always questioning Jesus' eating practices, weren't they? But this was query was really aimed more at Jesus' association with the "unseemly" crowds. Why would a holy Man want to spend time hanging out with the dregs of society? Wouldn't He rather spend time rubbing elbows with the religious elite? Jesus' response cuts right to the point: "The sinners know they need saving. You think you need no saving." Isn't that really what He meant? It is true that "evil company corrupts good morals". But it is also true that unless we spend time with the least, we will not have any impact on the world. There is a balance, and Jesus found it. His closest friends were those who followed Him and learned from Him. But He also spent time loo...

"The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast." Matthew 9:15b It was usually the Pharisees that questioned the practices of Jesus. If He was fasting, there were questions about that. If He was eating, they accused Him of being a glutton. In this particular passage, however, the ones questioning Jesus were the disciples of John the Baptist. They spent time in fasting. The Pharisees spent time in fasting. Why did not Jesus and His disciples fast? I love His full answer to them: "Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast." In other words, the whole purpose of fasting was to draw closer to God. But God was with them--God the Son--so why in the world would they be fasting? There would certainly come a time when Jesus would be taken away from His disciples (both when He was crucified and, ultimately, when He asce...

Today's verse: "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me." Luke 9:23b If we wish to follow Christ, we must, as Paul said, identify with Christ in His sufferings. And how do we do that? The verse clearly spells it out: Deny ourselves. (Death to our flesh.) Take up our cross daily. Every day, not just the days when we feel like it! And follow Him. Where did Christ go? To the cross! There's so much more I could say, but I really feel that this verse speaks it quite well on its own.... My offering to God: "I will follow Christ daily, even when it is difficult to do so."

Today marks the beginning of another season of Lent. I know I comment on this every year, so why break the tradition? :o) So many view this time of the year in a negative light. I disagree with that perspective! I see it as an awesome opportunity to identify with our Lord in a couple of ways: the time of temptation in the desert (40 days...thus, the 40 days of Lent) and in His sufferings. We identify with Him as we are tempted to give in to our fleshly desires. We identify with His sufferings as we allow our flesh to be crucified in certain areas, in order to draw closer to Him. As I was growing up, I knew very little about Lent. I knew very few Catholics. Those Catholics I knew were not very vocal about their faith. As I grew older, though, I met Catholics and those in other churches (Lutheran, particularly) who only spoke of Lent in terms of "giving up" something. I view this time more in the light of "giving in." Giving up more of my own desires so that I may ...

I'm feeling much better today. Thank you to all who left their kind words. I'm hoping to get back to posting a little more regularly. That remains to be seen, though. Between work, my kids' activities, church, housework, etc., I just can't seem to squeeze enough time out of a day!

Feeling a bit under the weather today. The weather here is damp and cold, and not doing much for my physical state of being. Just keep me in your prayers, and I'll be back soon!

Feeling a bit sorry for myself today. I finally get the chance to post a couple of times lately, and how many responses did I get??? Poor little me.

As I write this post this evening, I am writing on the last night of my life as the mother of a pre-teen. Tomorrow, my eldest son becomes a teen! So much about him has changed over the past few months. He has grown over 8" in a year! He is now taller than his mom. He wears a men's size 10 shoe. His voice is deep. He is slowly adopting the mannerisms of a young man. And yet... He is still a boy in some ways. Still needs his mom and dad when he's sick. Calls for our assurance when a sheriff's deputy shows up at the door. (See this link for more on that!) Still fights with his little brother over silly things. And still... He is not my little boy any more. It is a joyful thing, yet not. It is difficult to let go of his childhood, and yet I wouldn't wish it otherwise. A few months ago, my husband asked our son ("Harry" for blogging purposes) the names of some men whom he felt had had the greatest influence in his life. This past weekend, three of those men...

Yesterday was the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, a remembrance of when Joseph and Mary took baby Jesus to the temple to present Him. I have been intrigued by this story since I was a child. The beauty of Simeon's faith, and the dedication of Anna to stay in the temple. Both of these godly people had the true privilege of a great discovery: the Savior had come! And they got to see Him with their own eyes. Painting by Ron DiCianni http://www.tapestryproductions.com/_productimages/121059.jpg This passage fills my heart with wonder. What would it have been like to live in a world which did not have a Savior? I mean, we read the Old Testament with the knowledge of fulfilled prophecy: we know the Savior would be coming, because we know that it has happened! What was it like for the people who lived before He came? How did it feel to wonder "if" and "when" the Messiah would be born? Here are two great examples of people who never gave up hope, and continued ...