tbolt

Going Fishing So, what was it all for? Three years I followed him, we thought he was the one. He would right every wrong, and bring about a new order and kick the foreigners off our soil! I watched him, learned from him, saw the crowds he drew when he spoke. I saw what he did... He pushed me to do things I know I would have never done on my own, things I never could have some on my own. I pledged my loyalty, my love, my life to him. He even gave me a new name: “The Rock!” I said when push came to shove I would die beside him! Then push came to shove. We were ready to fight! Blade drawn, I was ready to teach them about righteous bloodshed! But he said no, that wasn't how things were going to work. Violence was not part of the plan, at least for us... So I ran. Like a coward, I ran... I came back, I tried. Was there anything I could do? All I could do was watch, and when someone called me out, I denied him. Three times. To a little girl! The

Today is Good Friday, the end of Holy Week, and almost the end of the Lenten season. There is a lot I need to consider today. So easy to retreat into the box of distractions and wander aimlessly... What are you willing to die for? This is something I really need to ponder today. And when I say die, I don't mean on the battlefield surrounded by heaps of the slain, or tying a bomb to one's face and walking into a public area... No... When the stormtroopers knock on one's door at 2:00 in the morning, invite them in, and go quietly with them, knowing what is about to happen... I'll be watching the Passion of the Christ this afternoon. The film brings tears to my eyes, as I consider the pain it portrays, and it's implications for my life. Asking me these questions: Would you die for a friend? Would you die for someone you liked / respected? Would you die for someone who was ignorant towards you? If someone died that you might live, how would you relate to that person for

Today is Ash Wednesday. The beginning of Lent, the ramp up to the Easter season. It is a time of reflection for those that follow Jesus. According to Psalm 90: “Seventy years are given to us! Some even live to eighty. But even the best years are filled with pain and trouble; soon they disappear, and we fly away. ” This verse hits home to me as I come off another major arthritic attack, and watch my blood pressure creeping into dangerous levels. I have seventeen years left, possibly even less looking at the mortality rate on my mother's side. It is a sobering thought. This is stuff you generally don't think about when you are in your teens – 20's. What have I actually accomplished with my life? Have I been useful to anyone, or anything? When I am gone will the world be better, or worse off because of me? Will anyone even notice me gone? What happens to me after I die? Those are not easy or simple questions. But I have the next forty days to ponder them.