Gospel Reading today Luke 4:31-47
"He was teaching on the Sabbath and they were astonished at his teaching, for his word was with authority." Luke 31-32
The part of the gospel "speaking with authority" stuck out to me today when I read the scripture. I tend to be "too nice" at times and do not speak up for the truth; however, I am working on this. I have a dear friend/spiritual mentor who is in her forties and has six children. She is a very wise and knowledgeable woman. She has taught me to speak truth. She is originally from Ohio and she said we Texans can sometimes be just too niiiiice. We tend to tell people what they want to hear instead of what they should be told. Jesus spoke with authority, so therefore, we disciples should speak with authority for what we believe in. As one of the Saints said (I can't remember who it is...) "Use words if necessary", meaning that speak truth by our actions,not words. Our society has gotten too lax and should be held accountable for things that are just not right.
Instead of nodding our heads in agreement with what everyone is doing, we should plant the seed in their mind that "hey, maybe that isn't okay". We are called not to be judgemental, but we are also called to stand up for truth. Changing society and the way it thinks start within the family. If we take a stand and not follow the "standard", then others will start re-thinking the choices they are making. For one, families being scattered in all different directions all weekend tied up with activities is not healthy in my opinion. What happened to the old-fashion Sundays of going to church, sitting down to eat a meal as a family and resting. Now families are scattered in all different directions.....one child playing basketball here, the other playing baseball there....the father is at one game and the mother is at the other. This is not "keeping holy the Lord's day", which is one of the ten commandments. Slowly but surely society and the ways of the world is eating away family time. Everyone else is doing it, so should we. Life continues to get more complicated. Jesus and His blessed mother calls us to live a simple life. What does that entail? I am constantly asking myself this question as we are bombarded with activities and being "on the go". One of the ways in keeping life simple, I believe, is the family staying intact. To stop the nonsense of being stressed trying to get everyone to certain places and just saying NO! I don't know about you all, but I didn't start sports and cheerleading until 7th grade. I didn't go to school until Kindergarten. Life was simple. I spent summers playing make believe, barbies, and out in the fields making wheat gum during Harvest. My mom was in the kitchen cooking for our family and taking care of the home. She wasn't consumed with entertainment for us. She had work to do. Now mothers are constantly enrolling their children in all kinds of activities, thinking it will help them be better, have more confidence, become more intelligent. My opinion, all this will do is not let the child be a child. We have got to get back to the mentality of keeping life simple. The best place for a soul to take beautiful form is in the home. For the more scattered our families are, especially the mothers, the more weak we become and let havoc enter our homes and our hearts. Who do you think is behind this? Take a wild guess!?!
So today, as we end the month of August and look to the Fall, try keeping a simple minded heart with what is ahead. Don't think your child needs to be in every activity. Less is more. Children truly are the happiest when the family is together, living a simple life and enjoying each other's presence. As mothers, we can speak with authority by our actions. We can stand up for living a simple life and start by standing up for one of the ten commandments-Keep holy the Lord's day.
Blessings to you this Monday!
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