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Post by jarmstrong5 on Feb 28, 2015 18:04:20 GMT -7
How often do you go to reconciliation?
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Post by Admin on Mar 1, 2015 8:46:02 GMT -7
Every 3 months or so maybe
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Post by J on Apr 16, 2015 10:12:35 GMT -7
Me - Probably not enough [for what He wants of me]!
I'm still very new in the church and oftentimes learning and hearing and reading more than I can absorb at one time. I can't wait to see where God leads me in another year, and can't believe where I was a year and two years and five years ago. Humbling to think about. Very humbling.
What I have learned to date: If it weren't for the forgiveness and mercy He gives us through reconciliation, I wouldn't have the courage to change and continue to pursue His will for me. I'm weak. I'd just give up. But knowing God's unfathomable and endless love for us and believing in His mercy allows me to place more and more of my daily life in His hands while suffering less from self-recrimination. His love allows me to actually work toward a more positive and fruitful understanding of my own sinful nature without feeling sorry for myself or berating myself into inactivity or negative thoughts. His love and mercy give me strength where I dreadfully fail on my own.
One quick personal example, not trying to make this about me, but hopefully it might help someone out there or continue a discussion that will help me further:
I had a great lesson served on me in terms of understanding a piece of the reconciliation process recently. I understood a secular or singular definition of the sin of Envy as one dimensional, that being jealousy or being covetous of others. I was real happy with myself [wrong!], because it was one of the few areas where I felt confident that I didn't suffer in [wrong again], as I truly didn't and still don't look at others' positions or possessions and want them for myself or begrudge their having those things. Maybe because I have been blessed with more than I deserve, but that's another topic.
However, when the spiritual explanation of Envy was delivered to me [more than once, it takes me awhile, I'm stubborn i.e. prideful, right?], I had an eye-opener of a time with it. Taking Envy to the "next level" and desiring the failure of others, or actually enjoying or relishing the failure of others due to my own fears, insecurities or resentments, I wallowed in that for most of my life. Those feelings led me to actions of gossip, slander and disparagement, and even more serious actions of actively pursuing others' failure and the undermining of their reputations. Like it was my place to judge, sentence and execute!
When I realized not only was it not my place to judge, but further it is not placing myself in and under God's will when I am self-righteous or "justified" by those feelings and actions, well, it changed not only the discernment process of preparing for and completing reconciliation, but continually helps keep me from diving back into that pool of self-righteousness, gives me a better platform or foundation to start from on a daily basis. The thoughts still come, but less frequently. They are easier to recognize, understand and dismiss, and the actions behind those thoughts are slowly being eliminated.
If He would just take away that darn "free will," right? Or if I would just work harder...
As soon as I forget He is giving me this gift or when I try to take credit for this process in my own mind, I slip, and quickly. One of the great graces from this learning process is that by understanding the spiritual nature as opposed to the secular or "dictionary" definition of sin allows me to better discern and contemplate His will and desires for me and spills over into the other areas of my thoughts and actions as well. Thankfully, Jesus gave us a little outline as well, called the Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy. If I can just follow the directions...
When I focus on the fact that all the gifts He has provided did not come from my occasional work ethic or my occasional patience or my intelligence [overrated in my own ego] or my whatever, when I take "my" and "me" and "I" out of the equation [for He gave me those traits as gifts as well], then I can just thank Him, praise Him, and ask for help in the next phase of my understanding and growth.
Thank God for the sacrament of Reconciliation and His priests who He allows to serve "in persona Christi" to offer us forgiveness and mercy...
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