Lent Day 6

The Fifth Commandment is "Thou Shalt Not Kill". This means more than just the physical aspect, and this includes the Eighth Commandment "Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness Against Thy Neighbor".Sirach 28:17 says... “The blow of a whip raises a welt, but a blow of the tongue crushes the bones. Many have fallen by the edge of the sword, but not so many as have fallen because of the tongue”.
Non-constructive criticism and gossip can kill another person's self-esteem and motivation.How would that person feel if he or she could hear what was being said? How would you feel? You may not be too crazy about your neighbor, but you do not have to lie or gossip about them. The Golden Rule says to do unto others as you would have them do unto you, so would you prefer that they gossip against you as well?Nobody is perfect, so why should you expect your neighbors to be perfect? Nobody is as good as they think they are, and nobody is as bad as they think they are, so give them a break and only speak about the good in everyone.It has been said to avoid judging other people unless you have walked a mile in their shoes. In other words, if you have been faced with their same trials and tribulations, maybe you also would have made the same decisions they did, so do not be too quick to criticize.

Lent Day 5

The Fourth Commandment is "Honor Thy Father And Thy Mother". So why should you honor them when you don’t like some of the things they do? Well, for starters, can you think of anyone else who would be willing to die for you, right now?They gave you the gift of life. If you are not happy with that gift, would you rather be born an earthworm, so you can be plucked from your home, pierced with an iron hook and dangled in the water until some fish eats you? No, you would rather be the fish, right? But if the bigger fish don’t get you the humans will. So you would rather be a human, even if you happen to live in a place like Ethiopia where there are no fish to eat, or anything else to eat for that matter. No, you would rather live where there is food, even if you happen to live in Iraq where every step you take could set off a land mine. No, you would rather live where it is safe, even if it is Siberia where the temperature is a bit uncomfortable to say the least. No, you would rather live in the good old USA, even if you are homeless and broke. No, you would rather have a home and money, even if you happen to be blind, or deaf, or paralyzed, or mute. No, you would rather have the gifts of sight, hearing, motion, and speech, even if you happen to have health problems like cancer, AIDS, diabetes, asthma, food allergies or various other diseases. No, better to be healthy, even if you happen to live in a ghetto where dangers abound. No, you would rather live in a suburb of one of the world’s greatest cities where it is relatively safe and has all the conveniences you could ever need. Wake up. Over 99 percent in the people in the world wish they had things as good as we do. If we cannot give thanks for that, perhaps we take too much for granted, and our thought processes are in need of adjustment.

Lent Day 4

The Third Commandment is "Remember thou keep holy The Lord's Day".

Does that mean we have to spend the whole day in church? No, but if there are 168 hours in a week, is it too much to ask that you give only one of those hours back?

Some do not attend Mass because they get bored, but that is missing the point. You are not there to be entertained, you are there to give thanks for the many blessings you have been given.

Are there other ways to keep the day holy? Yes, spend time with your loved ones, doing what THEY want to do instead of what YOU want to do. Jesus Himself once said whenever two or three of you are gathered in My Name, there I am in the midst of you. That makes it holy.

Lent Day 3

The Second Commandment is "Thou Shalt Not Take The Name Of The Lord In Vain".

What is vain? Figure it out. When we use God’s name are we praying or cursing?

If you ever heard of Charles Barkley, you know that he was one of the nastiest basketball players who ever lived, yet when he gets frustrated, he says something like “God...bless...mah...mutha”.

If we are not smarter than Charles Barkley, then maybe we would be better off to make up our own substitute phrases. If not, just bite your tongue and say a silent prayer instead.

Lent Day 2

The First Commandment is "I am The Lord thy God, thou shalt not have strange gods before Me". In the George Burns movie “Oh God”, the idea came up that Jesus was God’s Son, and so was Buddha and so was Mohammed, and so were others who were spiritual leaders for their people, indicating that Jesus was no more special than any of the others. However, did Buddha or Mohammed or others rise from the dead, or raise others from the dead, or instantly heal the sick, or walk on water, or perform many other such miracles? I think not, therefore it stands to reason that Jesus is indeed much more special than the others, and we had better pay attention to the things that He said, such as He is God’s only Son, and the only way to the Father, the only way to salvation is thru Him.

Lent Day 1

As in years past, rather than giving up something for Lent, instead I am going to make a daily entry here.

Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent. The ashes remind us that we are made from dust, and to dust we shall return.

Nobody lives forever, and we are going to be dead a lot longer than we are going to be alive, so think about where you would prefer to spend eternity, with God or apart from God?

The answer to that question is a result of the way we choose to live our lives right here and now, in other words we are being tested.

Instead of saying you wish you could live your life over again, consider that you really can, because the test is not over yet, today if the first day of the rest of your life, so make the most of it.

My Thanksgiving thoughts
The 7 wonders of the world are nice, but I can do without them.
Here are some greater wonders that I would rather not do without, although some less fortunate people do not have these blessings, for which most of us take for granted but they are truly greater wonders.

To be able to see.
To be able to hear.
To be able to smell.
To be able to taste.
To be able to touch and feel.
To be able to laugh.
To be able to love and feel many other emotions.
To be able to communicate and form friendships and bonds.
To be mobile, to be able to walk and run.
To be able to ponder the vastness of the universe and the diverse forms of life on land and sea.
There are too many others to mention.

The phrase "stop and smell the roses" pales in comparison to this song.

O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds Thy hand hath made,
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy works thruout the universe displayed.

(Refrain)
Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee,
How great Thou art, how great Thou art,How great Thou art, how great Thou art,
Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee,
How great Thou art, how great Thou art,How great Thou art, how great Thou art,

When thru the woods, and forest glades I wander,
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees,
When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur,
Or hear the brook, and feel the gentle breeze,

(Refrain)

And when I think, that God's own Son not sparing
Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in,
That on the cross, my burden gladly sharing,
He bled and died, to take away my sin,

(Refrain)

When Christ shall come, with shout of acclamation,
To take me home, such joy shall fill my heart,
Then I will bow, in humble adoration,
And there declare, my God how great Thou art,

(Refrain)