What I learned in Church

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Last Sunday my church was all over the place. It was Children's Sunday. Here are a few thoughts:

Remember when...
I remember vividly memorizing little scriptures to recite for Easter or Christmas or Hanukah or Ramadan (I celebrate GOD wherever he his). I had no idea what these things meant. The joy was just being up there having adults hang on these words you were reciting. Today, over twenty years later, I am the adult looking in awe, remembering the preparation involved, recognizing the difference in meaning to me now compared to then. Now, I'm not one to dwell on the past. But I never forget. If you forget where you came from, how can you gauge your progress?

One verse Sunday was in I Corinthians Chapter 1 (always read the whole chapter). The message was to stay focused. Stay pure because politicians will always corrupt the truth, whether they intend to or not. I could write a book about separation of Church and State. It's something both sides preach but neither is successful at. I wonder why…

Then we went over Matthew chapter 4
Jesus was walking by the see and called four fisherman to leave their jobs and family to follow him. Our prayer for the day was - "Lord you have called us to follow"

As lent approaches, we should consider what we would give up for Jesus. We could start the thought process by remembering the many, many things we have given up for relationships, work, money, fame. I'm sure we could come up with something for Jesus.

What am I going to give up for lent?

Any ideas.

Great blog considering the time of the year. You know being in N.O. probably makes this have more meaning, since this is probably the only place in this country where Catholicism dominates like it does (afterall, the city shuts down for three days in anticipation of Lent).
In any case, I think the two passages that you touched on send the correct message for this time of year. Lent should be a time to focus. You give up something, but in giving up something, there should be some thought as to why. To me, the reason for giving up something and making a sacrifice is just as important as the act. If you do the act, but your intentions/reason aren't just, then it's useless if you ask me. Secondly, I definitely think it's a time to reflect on the type of life that we're called to follow. Not everyone's calling is the same. But, in life, I truly believe that we are all called to accomplish some type of work. And no matter how minute it may seem, we're fulfilling part of God's plan.
All in all, I see Lent as a time of personal improvement. You sacrifice something in an effort to gain some type of focus (at least I know I will) and we should all reflect on the lives that we are called to follow.