| Friday, March 20, 2009 Lenten Weekday (Total Consecration - Day 29) | ||
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Mark 12:30 and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.'
I hear a lot of people complain about the rules and the rituals of religion and the guilt that they are made to feel. I wonder if it is the church that is the problem or if it is the people that have the problem.
Suppose that there is a young American man who falls in love with a young German woman. The woman speaks no English and lives in Germany. This man, in order to show his love and to be able to relate to the woman at a more intimate level decides he is going to learn the German language. And, he takes a second job so that the can afford to fly to Germany to be with her.
The obstacles to their relationship aren't really obstacles at all. In fact as the man learns the language he is doing so in love and can't wait to show her how much he has learned.
If we love with our whole heart, the rules and rituals aren't going to stop us, but in fact they become a joy because we understand that these are the ways that we are able to related to God and to show him how much we love him. They become a joy and a blessing, not a burden.
Father, help me by your Holy Spirit to see the path to you as a blessing filled with moments of joy. Help me to understand that they are for my benefit and not to be an obstacle to my relationship with you.
Amen
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