Another good Week
Today, I wrote on the letter Z. I have yet to include any Spanish words yet. I am thinking about my next method of communication. I think it will be more interactive.
It has been a crazy week, but good. As is the norm, nothing went as planned, but I have had many opportunities to ponder on those moments and others. I hope that I am able to learn from them. My thoughts have been combined between two thoughts and how they apply to each other. Hopefully I will be able to convey that message today.
My reading has taken me to the betrayal, arrest, accusations, sentencing, and death of Christ. As I read about his sacrifices, ponder his offering, and strive to understand a little more the Atonement, I find myself trying to envision what kind of life Jesus lived. I have a feeling he was teased as a child, even by his own siblings. My heart tells me he was different, knew he was different, chose to be different, and was probably mocked continually for it. If he tripped, stumbled, missed a catch, dropped a ball, ran the wrong way, or was picked last to play, his burden of chastisement was probably greater. I ponder how much he was ridden because he wanted to learn from the scriptures, attend the temple, and even read, study, or try to learn; yet I don't know that he was afforded such luxuries all the time. I get the impression that he did not have a stable place to lay his head. I am led to believe that his family spent a great deal of time living in a tent, renting a space to live, or traveling from village to village, as work dictated. He did not wear fancy robes, eat elaborate meals, or have a home for entertaining. I wonder how much time he spent in the fields with the shepherds, not out of curiosity, but necessity of being a place to escape. I wonder.
As he grew, I am sure his burden does not seem to lighten. He spends a great deal of time with the sick and infirm, he is well versed with the pool of Bethesda, beggars of alms, the deaf, blind, and cripple. Was this because he once was one? Where there family members or siblings who he endured living with? Was he familiar first hand of needing to rely on others for his daily bread? These are thoughts that go through my head.
In the end, he was hunted by mobs, gangs, evil doers, and such. He was beaten, spit upon, yelled at, and condemned to death on a cross. Even as he hung in pain and near death, the mockery never stopped. Some would call this judging. What do you think?
However, after all this, what seems to stand out to me most this week is found in Luke 23:34; "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." I know I have found myself on the similar mockery. Many times, the mockery is created in my own head and I find myself making it more sever, grander is size and affect, harsher and more unpleasant, if nothing else to allow me to wallow in my own self pity. Yet, not once do we ever hear of Christ taking offense for his own burdens. Though I am sure there were many opportunities. He endured them all, that through his life's lessons he could learn to understand what we might one day be asked to endure. That he could, when we come to him wallowing in pity, understand, console, and give comfort, if we are willing to let him.
How often to we give in? How often to we for get to forgive? How often do we say, "They know not what they do."? How can they? They don't know what we are feeling, where we are most sensitive, or weak? Only he knows, and I have never heard of him rubbing it in out faces, digging his fingers into the open wound, or pouring in salt to increase the pain. But there are many of us who do.
As a result, I have resolved to be a little more forgiving, less likely to jump on the pity wagon, and try to understand, that 9 times out of 10, the judgment, mockery, or offense was unintentional. There is no reason for me to case the blame, hold the grudge, or beat myself up about it. Those who have, are not different than me. They are probably battling the same battle of trying not to take offense.
Well, I got through one of my thoughts, the other continues to linger. I will have to let it hover for a while and I will share another time.
So where I started...
The week has had its ups and downs. Work has been crazy busy with an outage this week. It shut down, grounded, and stopped our entire operation for like 4 hours this week. Lots of people were stranded. Hence, the Professor and I were the only ones from our family that were able to go to the family reunion. The Queen stayed homed and worked on Friday. She continues to make progress with the doctor's and we hope to have more progress in the coming week.
The Professor is just enjoying her time off. The A/C got fixed on Wednesday, so she was forced to do some workouts, outside. The dogs enjoyed it.
Tall Man has been a little under the weather. He not only had to make up some time from last weekend, but he also had to make up some time for visits to our health care system. He is working to get on the mend.
SnakPack just worked and worked and worked. When he was not working he was playing, playing, and playing. Tuesday night has become a team building night where the staff and he go out on adventures together. We will have to figure out how to share his new slow-motion video expertise.
The reunion was good. It would have been fun to have more, but the number was manageable. It was quiet in the 100 acre woods.
It has been a crazy week, but good. As is the norm, nothing went as planned, but I have had many opportunities to ponder on those moments and others. I hope that I am able to learn from them. My thoughts have been combined between two thoughts and how they apply to each other. Hopefully I will be able to convey that message today.
My reading has taken me to the betrayal, arrest, accusations, sentencing, and death of Christ. As I read about his sacrifices, ponder his offering, and strive to understand a little more the Atonement, I find myself trying to envision what kind of life Jesus lived. I have a feeling he was teased as a child, even by his own siblings. My heart tells me he was different, knew he was different, chose to be different, and was probably mocked continually for it. If he tripped, stumbled, missed a catch, dropped a ball, ran the wrong way, or was picked last to play, his burden of chastisement was probably greater. I ponder how much he was ridden because he wanted to learn from the scriptures, attend the temple, and even read, study, or try to learn; yet I don't know that he was afforded such luxuries all the time. I get the impression that he did not have a stable place to lay his head. I am led to believe that his family spent a great deal of time living in a tent, renting a space to live, or traveling from village to village, as work dictated. He did not wear fancy robes, eat elaborate meals, or have a home for entertaining. I wonder how much time he spent in the fields with the shepherds, not out of curiosity, but necessity of being a place to escape. I wonder.
As he grew, I am sure his burden does not seem to lighten. He spends a great deal of time with the sick and infirm, he is well versed with the pool of Bethesda, beggars of alms, the deaf, blind, and cripple. Was this because he once was one? Where there family members or siblings who he endured living with? Was he familiar first hand of needing to rely on others for his daily bread? These are thoughts that go through my head.
In the end, he was hunted by mobs, gangs, evil doers, and such. He was beaten, spit upon, yelled at, and condemned to death on a cross. Even as he hung in pain and near death, the mockery never stopped. Some would call this judging. What do you think?
However, after all this, what seems to stand out to me most this week is found in Luke 23:34; "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do." I know I have found myself on the similar mockery. Many times, the mockery is created in my own head and I find myself making it more sever, grander is size and affect, harsher and more unpleasant, if nothing else to allow me to wallow in my own self pity. Yet, not once do we ever hear of Christ taking offense for his own burdens. Though I am sure there were many opportunities. He endured them all, that through his life's lessons he could learn to understand what we might one day be asked to endure. That he could, when we come to him wallowing in pity, understand, console, and give comfort, if we are willing to let him.
How often to we give in? How often to we for get to forgive? How often do we say, "They know not what they do."? How can they? They don't know what we are feeling, where we are most sensitive, or weak? Only he knows, and I have never heard of him rubbing it in out faces, digging his fingers into the open wound, or pouring in salt to increase the pain. But there are many of us who do.
As a result, I have resolved to be a little more forgiving, less likely to jump on the pity wagon, and try to understand, that 9 times out of 10, the judgment, mockery, or offense was unintentional. There is no reason for me to case the blame, hold the grudge, or beat myself up about it. Those who have, are not different than me. They are probably battling the same battle of trying not to take offense.
Well, I got through one of my thoughts, the other continues to linger. I will have to let it hover for a while and I will share another time.
So where I started...
The week has had its ups and downs. Work has been crazy busy with an outage this week. It shut down, grounded, and stopped our entire operation for like 4 hours this week. Lots of people were stranded. Hence, the Professor and I were the only ones from our family that were able to go to the family reunion. The Queen stayed homed and worked on Friday. She continues to make progress with the doctor's and we hope to have more progress in the coming week.
The Professor is just enjoying her time off. The A/C got fixed on Wednesday, so she was forced to do some workouts, outside. The dogs enjoyed it.
Tall Man has been a little under the weather. He not only had to make up some time from last weekend, but he also had to make up some time for visits to our health care system. He is working to get on the mend.
SnakPack just worked and worked and worked. When he was not working he was playing, playing, and playing. Tuesday night has become a team building night where the staff and he go out on adventures together. We will have to figure out how to share his new slow-motion video expertise.
The reunion was good. It would have been fun to have more, but the number was manageable. It was quiet in the 100 acre woods.
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