Lenten Journeys week 2 - Sin and God's Mercy

Who has greater knowledge and wisdom, God or man?

How you answer that question can make all the difference in this world and the next. And after we answer that question we need to answer another one; Do I live my life like I know more than God?

For this weeks blog I will be reflecting on sin. One of the greatest myths of our time is that sin doesn't exist and/or that there are no consequences for our sins. As we have become more monetarily wealthy as a whole, we have had much more leisure time to seek out pleasure in life. No longer do we spend our entire life just trying to provide food, shelter, and security. In that search for pleasure we often push God aside and seek out things apart from Him. We tend to think about and follow our feelings instead of asking God, listening to God in silent reflection, and following His ways.

Let's explore this reality a little deeper as it is nothing new to mankind.

When our first parents, Adam and Eve, were living in the garden, God provided for all their needs. He was the source of everything for them. He created everything for them. He provided water, food, and a safe place to live. He gave them everything that they needed, so naturally they had free time to seek out whatever their hearts desired. God gave them everything they ever needed and more. He only asked one thing of them, do not eat of the fruit of this one tree.

Why would God do this? Why would God give everything to Man and withhold this one thing from him?

I really don't have the answer. God's ways are not my ways. But I do think that we need to ponder these type of questions. Our busy culture keeps us so active that I often forget to take the time to reflect on these things. I think that one of the main reasons we have pushed the idea of sin aside as a culture is that we are too busy to take the time to think about it. Lent is a great time to reflect on the deeper things in our life.

I remember hearing a scripture passage that states; God desires our obedience more than our sacrifice. Maybe that can explain to us why God told Adam and Eve not to eat of this tree. If we are to love God with our whole heart, mind, and strength there must be present something else which we could love instead. In this simplified case it's this question, God gave me everything but this one thing, can I be satisfied with what God gave me or do I want more?

Remember our opening question, who has greater wisdom and knowledge, God or man?

We know how the story goes. Adam and Eve were tempted and choose to eat the fruit of the tree. But it was good. Eve looked upon the fruit and it was desirable. To them it appeared like the best looking fruit in the whole garden. How could something that appears so good be bad for me? God created it, it must be good. He put it here in the garden, he gave us this tree and its fruit. Why would God give me something and not let me have it for myself? Not let me use it as I see fit? Soon, this type of thinking turns into, how do I see the situation? What do I think? How do I feel about it? I do this all the time. I find ways to justify my behavior. I find ways to rationalize why I am about to do something wrong. In the end I am very good at convincing myself that a sinful course of action is not sinful at all and is just a pursuit of happiness and pleasure. I believe we all do this to some degree.

And Eve said, “but God said, you shall not eat of it or even touch it, least you shall die”.

She had full knowledge of the situation. She already knew right from wrong, what else did she need to know? Both Adam and Eve knew that they should not eat from the tree. And yet they continued to gaze on the fruit. They continued to ponder how pleasing it was to look upon on it. I'll bet they even thought about how scrumptious it would taste and how perfect it would feel in her mouth.

So Adam and Eve decided that they knew more than God and ate of the fruit.

It's a sad story. As I reflect upon it I am saddened that they didn't have the willpower to just say no. To think of all the consequences of this one little act. How sad, how tragic. I wish I could reach back in time and slap them across the face and yell at them not to do it.

Then I am compelled to think of my own life. This is my story as well. How many times have I had full knowledge of good and evil and still I choose my way over God's way. I knew full well what God thought was best and I choose my way instead. I rationalized my behavior and came up with excuses ahead of time. I already had an alibi, I was prepared to defend my position and actions. What a sad story, how tragic. I realize that on my own I don't have the will power to follow God.

And God is a just God. He is unchanging and all powerful. He must fulfill His justice. God said that Adam and Eve would die if they ate the fruit from that tree and God, being a just God, must fulfill His justice. In his mercy God fulfills his justice through his own son.

Our reflection on sin is incomplete if we do not ultimately think about Jesus Christ. God's ultimate justice. God loves each of us so much that he sent his only son into the world to take our place and die for our sins.

Adam and Eve did not deserve to live. They had full knowledge of the consequences of their disobedience and yet they still disobeyed. We have full knowledge of the repercussions of our own sin and yet we still sin. Whenever we sin we place ourselves and our own knowledge above that of God. We simply say to God, I know more than you God, I know what I need and I am going to get it!

Last week I talked about including God into everything we do and put out the idea that we prioritize our lives like a dart board with God as the entire board. When we sin we miss the dart board entirely. We are aiming for a good. We look at the object of our sin and it is desirable. We wrestle with the consequences in our mind. We throw our dart and we miss the board. We separate ourselves from God and cause permanent damage, in this case a hole in the drywall that will need to be fixed, in real life we separate ourselves from God and his mercy.

But God gives us a do over. He gives us back the dart and says try again. And like a loving Father he demonstrates a better way. He shows us how to throw the dart with more accuracy. In Jesus, God shows us a better way to live. He shows us the way of obedience. Then God gives us the dart and says try again. And we throw the dart, and we miss the board again. And God gives us another do over. We don't deserve it, but he continues to give us another chance. We don't even deserve to still be in the game and yet he keeps handing us the dart and says try again. Try again. I Love You, try again.

The definition of sin is to miss the mark. To aim for a good thing but miss it. How often have we tried and missed the mark? It happens over and over again, and every time God gives us a do over that we don't deserve.

Thanks be to Jesus Christ our Savior!

FASTING

Did you try one of the suggested 1 time fasts from last week. If not or if you tried and failed go back and read last weeks reflection and try again. You get a do over.

For me, I did the food fast. One night this last week we prepared a simple meal. We used a recipe provided by C.R.S. (Catholic Relief Services) from the country of Kenya. We said some prayers for the people of Kenya and we pulled out the globe and found were Kenya was on the map. It was a very meager dinner compared to the normal meal we have. Within an hour I was hungry again. But as that evening proceeded I kept finding myself saying little prayers every time I felt hungry. It was a rewarding experience and contrary to my daughters words at the time, 'I'm so hungry I think I could die', we all survived the evening.

Fasting can be hard. It can be difficult. We need to remember that as we empty ourselves of something, we should replace that space with God. We should always include him in our fasting. Otherwise it can become just an empty practice.

This week, in keeping with our weekly theme of sin, let us fast from an activity that brings us closer to our sin. Something or someone that leads us closer to what tempts us. Here are a few examples of what that may be:

• Do you like to gossip : this week fast from talking about other people unless it is positive or absolutely necessary. If someone asks about another person say something positive or just don't say anything. If the conversation turns negative excuse yourself and offer up a prayer for that person.
• Do you gamble on sporting events : this week is March Madness and the college basketball tournament starts. Don't fill out a bracket this year. Is it really all that important. Turn off the game and don't watch sports center. The media blitz and hype can become intoxicating.
• Are you addicted to the internet or something you find on the internet : Don't turn on your computer this week. If you need to be on computer for work it's OK but nothing else for a week. No facebook or porn sites. No you tube or blogs, except this one of course. Can you remember back to a day when we didn't even have home computers?
• Do you over eat sweets and treats : Gather them all up into a bag and give them away or throw them away. Don't have any of the junk in the house and you will have a better chance of avoiding them. Eat some fruit or a piece of cheese instead. Have substitutes on hand for those really hard moments.
• Are you always on the phone and staying connected : Try turning off your smartphone and laptop when you leave work. If it is not essential turn it off. Let work be work time but then let it go. Work will still be there tomorrow.
  This is only a one week experiment. You also need to remember to replace what you fast from with something else that is positive. That could be more time with family, or more time in prayer. It could be a little time each day in silence, listening to God. Whatever it is make sure you insert a positive practice into your fasting, not just replacing it with something else that could lead you to sin.
  Alms Giving
  Last week we looked at how much excess we have in our homes and some of the talents that we have. I did not get the chance to do this activity with my family this week but we are going to try again this week.

Know that we realize how much excess we truly do have, we need to take the focus off of us and make contact with the other. We need to know what other people need. We have so much stuff but what do we do with it? I see 3 different things we can do with that stuff: hoard it for ourselves, throw it away, or we can give it away to those in need.

But how do we know who needs it if we isolate ourselves from those in need. This week we need to get out and look for those in need. Here are some suggestions:

• In normal everyday conversation ask someone, do you need anything today? They may say no, I'm all good, but then again they may have a legitimate need that you could fill. But you have to ask.

• When you see someone at work or doing a task ask them, can I help you? You will never know what they need if you don't ask. If they need help you can chip in and effectively give them assistance.

• When someone looks sad or angry, stop and talk to them. Listen to them. Don't try and solve their problems unless they ask for your advice. Just stop what you are doing and listen, give them a little attention and it will go a long way to showing them that you really care.

• As the weather warms up and spring arrives, get out and talk with your neighbors. Make a deliberate effort to go and say hi. Ask them how they are doing. Do you know all your neighbors by name and do they know you?

These are just a few suggestions for the week. But the focus needs to be on the other person. If you are really uncomfortable start by practicing these ideas at home with family members then move out away from the comforts of home.

How can we know how best to serve others if we do not now what others needs are?

Prayer

This week I am going to suggest that we spend some extra time with the scriptures. Read the first 3 chapters of Genesis. Really ponder what sin is and where is the sin in your own life. We all have sin. We all need a savior. Let's spend some time and really think about these difficult issues.

As you read the holy scriptures try and imagine yourself in the story. What would you do in the same situation? If you read the Genesis story think about the times in your life when you made a decision based on your knowledge instead of God's.

This could be as simple as thinking that going to church on Sunday isn't that important, and thinking we can just pray at home instead. Ask yourself, is this what God's will is for me or is this my will?

It could also be something as difficult as homosexuality and same sex relationships. Really think about it and ask yourself, is this my way of thinking or is this the way God thinks?

We can apply this question to lots of subjects in our lives. The bottom line question is contained within the most common Christian prayer, the Lord's Prayer. Do I want my will to be done or do I want to follow God's will?

This is so counter cultural in America. We are trained and brought up to live our lives according to our own understanding of good and evil, or what feels good and brings us satisfaction. It takes a lot of courage to step out and be different. But do we really mean what we say when we pray the Lord's Prayer?

One way to ponder this and reflect on this is to slow down and pray the Lord's Prayer very slowly. Turn down the lights. Quiet your surroundings. Breath deeply and slowly for about 1 minute. Know begin the prayer. Think the words in your mind instead of saying them out loud. As you breath in think about one word then as you breath out think the next. Go very slowly and allow lots of silence and space between phrases. Places that God can speak into your heart. For each of us there should come a point in the prayer that we realize that we have failed to live out this prayer. Stop at this point and reflect in silence. Ask God to help you live out this part of the prayer. After a period of quiet reflection finish the prayer. When you have completed this exercise go back and pray the Lord's Prayer out loud.

This brief prayer exercise takes only about 15 minutes. It can go longer if you wish but you should make sure you take your time and spend at least 15 minutes with it. Please try it. I have found it to be very rewarding and thought provoking. Each time I do it I am left with a different result of the prayer so long as I give the proper time for God to speak to me.

Closing

Our God is a merciful and loving God. Please focus on God's love as you engage in these and other lenten practices this week. Keep him with you as you do whatever it is you wish to do on your journey. Don't just go in blind and alone but ask him to join you and keep him close by.

Last week I suggested to set an alarm on your phone to remind you to pray. I had a great experience with this this last week. I set my alarm to go off each day and labeled my alarm with this title: 'Pray – Jesus loves me'. Then one day I forgot my phone at home. I found myself praying several times throughout the day without the reminder of my phone alarm. I just kept thinking Jesus loves me. It was an awesome reminder of what is important and it made me feel good.

This is what we all need. To be reminded of God's love for us as often as possible. Next week we will look more deeply into relationships and sharing that love with others. Until then may God bless you on your Lenten Journey.

And always remember, God Loves You, and I do too. You are never alone.