Lent begins

How did I forget that yesterday was Ash Wednesday?  I was so swamped at work that I didn't fast.  Of course I was so busy at work that I didn't even eat until 2pm, didn't eat all my food.  Mom had cooked white beans with some pickled pork, so I had maybe one bite of that, but I didn't realize it until I got home.  I went to mass and read my devotion for yesterday although I didn't notice until a moment ago, that I hadn't even read the correct one.

So tonight I read two devotionals, but I'm only going to write about one.
"How does my religious life connect to my daily life?"  That is the question.  The more I think about it the more I realize that I can make it connect or I can really think hard and long about what decisions I make daily that full of "God thought" I can call it.

I can honestly say that I begin my day giving Thanks and in prayer.  I, 90%, of the time listen to Christian music on K-Love (which I contribute to financially) or XM Satelitte radio's Ch. 32- The Message, when I'm in my car, so on my way home to and from work I hear God's message through some of the most talented musicians in the world.  And of course when things aren't going my way or I get stressed I call on the Lord, but do I think about God in all my decisions?  Probably not.  Do I know that no matter how far away I am from the Lord that He is always willing to accept me again?  Yes, I do.  It's noted many times that God wants to have a relationship with us, but I believe that we equally need to desire to have that same relationship with Him.  It's a two way street if there ever was one.

So I have to say that they work together, that one is dependent upon the other.  My daily life and my religious life can't only connect on Sundays, they must continually overlap, when I lose track of things in my daily life, I know that the religious strength will guide me home.  As part of this 40 days of devotion, I will make an effort to connect the lives, so they become only one life...that my daily life is a religious life and my religion shows daily.

So no Facebook, no soft drinks - 39 days to go...time for some silent prayer - a lifetime to go.
Amen.