Androcles and the Lion

I just finished reading Androcles and the Lion (for the nth time).  Shaw might have been an atheist, but I think he was reaching for something, whether he realized it or not....

"That is the strange thing, Captain, that a little pinch of incense should make all that difference.  Religion is such a great thing that when I meet really religious people we are friends at once, no matter what name we give the divine will that made us and moves us...But, when men who believe neither in my god nor in their own--men who do not know the meaning of the word religion--when these men drag me to the foot of an iron statue that has become the symbol of terror and darkness through which they walk, of their cruelty and greed, of their hatred of God and their oppression of man--when they ask me to pledge my soul before the people that this hideous idol is God, and that all this wickedness and falsehood is divine truth, I cannot do it, not even if they could put a thousand cruel deaths on me"

Lenten Update

It's been a long time, brothers and sisters...Like, almost a year!

I was looking over old posts, and have a few updates.  First, things are starting to look better with the friend I talked about in my last post.  The secret I'm learning is baby steps and lots of prayer.  A friend of mine is a priest and he told me that I should say the rosary for her.  I hate saying the rosary, so it was a good sacrifice, haha.  So, on my commute, I say a decade, which is just about all I have time for (on the drive, I mean).  The results have been interesting.  First, I'm noticing a bit of a change in my friend, and I'm certainly noticing a change in me.  I'm starting to dread the rosary less now.  And I'm staring to enjoy my new morning routine (almost).

I'm writing now for a few reasons.  One, it's almost Ash Wednesday (by the time most of you read this, it WILL BE Ash Wednesday).  The other reason was that I thought it might be nice to reach out again.

What are your Lenten resolutions?  Do you have any?  Oftentimes, I think this is a wasted opportunity.  Either we give up something frivolous (like chocolate) or we don't do anything at all, because we think of Lenten sacrifices as frivolous (like I did just now).

So, I'm trying to put together a mix of different things.  First, I'm giving up sugar (to an extent).  I love coffee, but I'm going to go black for Lent.  So, no cream, no sugar.  And it's going to suck.  That's my fasting (in addition to fasting from actual food).  I'm also going to focus on praying for priests.  And finally, I have two mottoes for the season: "Let your yes mean yes" and "Savor".  These won't make a ton of sense to you, per se, but they mean a lot to me.

Finally, I'm wrapping up my prayer life with some spiritual reading.  I have The Little Black Book, Magnificat (monthly), Magnificat (Lent), and The Word Among Us.  I'll have so much spiritual reading that my head will be spinning!  But, I'm looking forward to filling my precious reading time with very good things.

I'm wishing you all a faithful and fruitful Lent!

God bless,
♥Little Sister