Action

I made the decision yesterday that I wanted to return to the fold. Part of me still wants to remain true to the day's readings from the Divine Office, but do so less explicitly. I have access to a blog at school for school related purposes and I feel I have been preaching the Gospel with my actions, so now I will try to blog in that same spirit, promoting the Gospel in my writings without calling it the Gospel. Those familiar with the Gospel will likely see the connections. Those young in their faith can rest assured that nothing will be contrary to the Gospel.

My theme for the time being will focus on humility: removing the plank from one's own eye before trying to remove the speck from another's. This may be particularly appropriate as our country enters the height of the campaign season. The politicians with the most credibility are those transparent with their own work than those constantly calling on others to disclose this and that.

To follow my posts on workdays, go to http://websites.pdesas.org/stevensb

Blocked

Posts may become more sporadic from now on. We got a new Internet filter at work, which took a few weeks to really filter. I hadn't tried to log on to Google with the old system, but the new system was even letting Facebook and Hotmail through, although I didn't go to those sites even when I was not on the clock. In any case, now that I can only blog from home, I don't get on the computer every night and when I do, there may other items more important than publicly reflecting on the day's readings, but I will certainly continue doing the readings and can take solace in the fact that so many others are out there doing the same or similar offerings of praise, thanksgiving, and petitions through Jesus Our Lord.

Used Car Dealer

Driving home, stopped at a light, I noticed a saying written in soap on the window of a used car dealer that said, "God created you for him not you." The saying in itself is a good reminder I suppose, but the context seemed even more striking. Very few businesses are so outwardly Christian, first of all. The fact that it is a used car dealer is probably a coincidence, of course, but I like how those cars weren't good enough for somebody, yet the dealer had faith that someone else would see the good in them. It's not as significant as the stone that the builders rejected becoming the corner stone, but it could be a simple reminder of that worked into the course of a typically busy weekday.

More NFP

According to womentowomen.com, if you had more couples over a longer period of time than just us over 7 years, NFP would not be as effective as surgery, which is greater than 99%, but the risks and side-effects of surgery would be greater. Likewise, although condoms don't present any risks or side-effects, they are only 98% effective like NFP (and NFP is cheaper). I didn't mean to insinuate that NFP would be 100% effective for everyone, just for us. I did mean to insinuate that it's the safest because it is.

Natural Family Planning

So although there are a number of good quotes to use from the readings this past weekend, a quote from another time came up. I don’t have the exact quote or location, but to paraphrase it goes something like those that the world considers wise, prove themselves to be fools, while those that the world considers foolish prove themselves to be wiser. We didn’t actually say this to my wife’s doctor, but it helped us bite our tongues while getting lectured about Natural Family Planning as if we are doing it for purely spiritual reasons and that the science behind it isn’t more effective than what he proposes. My wife and I don’t understand everything that he learned in medical school, but we do understand the science of Natural Family Planning and the alternatives and how the success rate compares to the side effects for each option. What’s frustrating is that some doctors, like this one, do not know the science behind Natural Family Planning and still feel confident enough to draw a conclusion about it. Current misconceptions are based on the outdated rhythm method based on statistics, which some churches promoted for moral reasons, but which has since been replaced by Natural Family Planning based on science and without negative side effects associated with some alternatives and with better success rate than the remaining alternatives whether it comes to having children or avoiding pregnancies. My wife and I wanted to have kids during the summer so I would be around to help late in the pregnancy and immediately after. We’ve had our 3 kids each summer we tried on July 11, July 16, and August 8 respectively (and avoided pregnancies during the school years and other summers every year since we’ve been married). So although we don’t plan on another anytime soon, we do plan on using the same method to avoid pregnancy that we have for the last 7 plus years with 100% success and don’t feel a need to resort to anything the doctor proposed that comes with possible side effects or a success rate less than 100%.

Labor Day Weekend

Most of us certainly have something to look forward to this three-day weekend. I have a fantasy football draft tonight, a wedding for my wife's cousin tomorrow, and a baptism for my newborn, Emily, on Sunday, (and Monday to rest). However, today's readings remind us there's even something better to look forward to:

Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, nor has it so much as dawned on man what God has prepared for those who love him." -1 Corinthians 2:6-10a

Community

"See that no one among you has a faithless heart." -Hebrews 3:12

Among the stereotypes of Catholics and Protestants I don't like is how much emphasis is placed on a personal relationship with God among Protestants and not enough emphasis is placed on being part of the body of Christ and the responsibility of serving the community of faith. The stereptype for Catholics taking it to the other extreme of worshipping together and not as much on the individual. For Americans, in a culture that emphasizes the individual, it makes being Catholic that much harder and becoming Protestant that much more attractive. True believers among all Christians will find that balance and since I consider most of my readers to be true believers and American. Today's quote reminds of of our responsibility to others.

Apathy or Faith

Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Trial or distress, or persecution,r hunger, or nakedness, or danger, or the sword? Yet in all of this we are more than conquerors because of him who has loved us. for I am certain that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor pwers, neighter height nor depth nor any other creature, will be able to separate us from the love of God that comes to us in Christ Jesus, our Lord.
-Romans 8:35-39

I have been accused of being apathetic at times, not caring as much as I should about something in someone's opinion. However, I feel I have the right amount of concern about the things that are important based on my priorities and try to be respectful of others priorities.