Choose Life, Sirach 14:14-17

We are now in the second day of the season of Lent and I am thinking, what can I do/sacrifice for God this season. I am committed to giving up coffee and I am already counting the days till my next cup. Yes, that is a sacrifice, but so typical.  I’ve been getting email updates from Beth Gaby who is organizing the 40 Days for Life Concord, and thinking about committing some time to join their prayer vigils.

Next, I was reading morning prayers from the Magnificant, and found this scripture from Sirach reach out to me (below).

Somehow people think that abortion, euthanasia, and any other way that a person takes the life of another person is ok. This mindset shows how far away from God’s Word people have drifted or been influenced by a culture that accepts atrocities as everyday events. People are so desensitized to the evil in the world. The Ten Commandments are not suggestions from God, they are our marching orders. Anyone who thinks they can pick and choose which commandments they feel like embracing, is seriously deceived. We do live in a society where the media feeds those lies to the masses. If the masses don’t know the Word of God and embrace God’s truths, they are blinded from what is good and right and holy. God gives us free will to choose life or death. Which will you choose?

Word of God

Sirach 14:14-17

God in the beginning created human beings

and made them subject to their own free choice.

If you choose, you can keep the commandments;

loyalty is doing the will of God.

Set before you are fire and water;

to whatever you choose, stretch out your hand.

Before everyone are life and death,

whichever they choose will be given them.

Choose Life!

God Bless

Paula

Sleepless in Seattle

Last Saturday night, I decided to tune into the movie, Sleepless in Seattle, the 1993 classic love story. It seemed like a “safe” movie that hopefully would pass my “G” rating preference in movies.

However, very soon into the story I was upset over the story line. The setting is: Tom Hanks (Sam) loses his wife to cancer and he is now a single dad trying to move on with his life with his son Jonah. In this particular scene, Jonah asks his dad what happens to people after they die, and Sam says he doesn’t know. He said he has dreamed about talking to his wife, which makes him think, perhaps there is some afterlife, but then he brushes that off and again says he just doesn’t know. The two look at each other with a look of loss and confusion, end of the scene.

I am thinking this is the worst tragedy of the whole movie and it brings me back to a statement I hear so often in the Christian community when people face trials in their lives, “How do people who don’t know God, deal with these things?” I cannot imagine waking up and thinking that there is nothing but what is in front of me every day and when I die, that’s it, the story is over. How depressing is that thought? I know the truth and I know my family and friends that have gone before me are watching over me right now and I will see them again, when God calls me home. Best of all is to meet Jesus face to face and enter the eternal kingdom that he has ready for each one of us who believe.

I remember watching this movie when it first came out and enjoying it and not noticing all of its secular messages of atheism and the worldly accepted immorality of sex outside of marriage. That was back in the days when I was wrapped up in reading secular novels, watching prime time TV shows, and watching the latest movie. I was all wrapped up in a world that did not have a place for God, except on Sundays to attend mass. After mass, I went right back to my secular life. Things have changed for me since then and I gave up the secular novels and movies and focus on reading God’s Word. The veil of the secular world is being lifted from my sight and I am beginning to see the world for what it really is. It’s quite painful to see how blind I was, and it is necessary every day, to keep turning to God for the truth and the path to eternal life.

The world we live in is difficult at best for many and for those of us that are blessed with all of the earthy comforts of the developed world; we still suffer in many ways due to our fragile human nature. I like to keep in mind that we are exiles of this world and until we reach the eternal kingdom of heaven, we will suffer through many trials, some brought on by our own sinfulness, and some brought on by the sinfulness of others. We know the end of the story and we just have to persevere and pray every day for God’s love, mercy and forgiveness.