On line Church

So it's lent you know.  That means for 40 days, according to the Catholic church, we should try to give up or do something that would be considered a sacrifice for the Lord.  It's like a big thank you to Jesus for giving us the hook up so long ago.  Some people give up desserts, or some try not to swear, or some instead decide to go to church regularly but it's an individual choice, just like the choice we make daily whether or not to be happy, worried, loving etc.  Today I wanted to start going to church for lent.  I thought, it's been a long time and I really would like to attend a service that's just right for me.  Truth be told, I've been to mostly Catholic masses and the experience has not always been a good one. I've always envied those who went to church and actually got something from it and then ACTED upon it.  You know what I mean.  Instead of the folks that sit in church and then get out to the parking lot ready for war, I wanted to find the experience that taught about the teachings of Jesus.  Now here's the good part.  Some people don't even believe in Jesus but whether you do or not, the teachings are worth a listen.  Love thy neighbor is one of my favorites. It's the thing that keeps me from being a butthead when I might otherwise be inclined to do so but I ask myself what would I wish that person would do for me and then I act accordingly.  I can't say I do this all the time but I try to remember it.  Or another good one is Judge not, lest ye be judged.  Wow, that can be a tough one.  I can honestly say now every time I'm being a judge, I notice it.  I sometimes say, I know I'm being judgmental and sometimes I don't acknowledge it aloud but I hear that line of scripture every time ... yikes. Who am I to judge anyway?

So today I attended an ONLINE church.  That's so my speed.  It was the perfect start to this new lent thing I'm doing.  The sermon was to love how Jesus loved, live how Jesus lived and do what Jesus did.  Now again, even if you don't think of Jesus as being real, it's no matter.  If someone said love how Santa loves you would know that means give a bunch of presents.  So Jesus gave when it wasn't convenient but when there was a need.  I can do that.  He loved the lowest of the low and didn't judge them.  I can do that.  He saw needs and met them.  I can do that too.  Wow, who would have thought that in the middle of my A to Z chat with you I would become evangelic but I guess this is an insight to me and why I do some of the silly stuff I do.  It's not a game.  I am not kind to someone who was cruel because I'm manipulating in some way.  I do it because I would want to be forgiven.  Every time I was frustrated in the A to Z process, that's how I kept it together.  Every time I was disappointed, I thought about this stuff.  Every time I awoke to a new day hoping that Meryl Streep would call me and she didn't, I kept forging ahead because judging her wasn't going to change anything and being angry wasn't serving me or anyone around me.  Don't get me wrong, I was still angry but at least I knew in the back of my head that I was wasting my time. Then of course I was angry with myself for wasting my time being silly.  It's a vicious circle. So I guess you could say I didn't so much learn new things but was reminded of old things that are important to me.  And if I got nothing else from my online church, I learned that you can find anything online.  Sheesh, isn't that amazing?!