Good Friday, April 22:

Yet it was our infirmities that he bore, our sufferings that he endured, while we thought of him as stricken, as one smitten by God and afflicted. But he was pierced for our offenses, crushed for our sins; upon him was the chastisement that makes us whole, by his stripes we were healed. We had all gone astray like sheep, each following his own way; but the LORD laid upon him the guilt of us all. Though he was harshly treated, he submitted and opened not his mouth; like a lamb led to the slaughter or a sheep before the shearers, he was silent and opened not his mouth. Oppressed and condemned, he was taken away, and who would have thought any more of his destiny? When he was cut off from the land of the living, and smitten for the sin of his people, a grave was assigned him among the wicked and a burial place with evildoers, though he had done no wrong nor spoken any falsehood. But the LORD was pleased to crush him in infirmity. If he gives his life as an offering for sin, he shall see his descendants in a long life, and the will of the LORD shall be accomplished through him.

Holy Thursday, April 21: by Greg H

Before the feast of Passover, Jesus knew that his hour had come to pass from this world to the Father. He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end. The devil had already induced Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over. So, during supper, fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power and that he had come from God and was returning to God, he rose from supper and took off his outer garments. He took a towel and tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and dry them with the towel around his waist. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Master, are you going to wash my feet?” Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing, you do not understand now, but you will understand later.” Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me.” Simon Peter said to him, “Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well.” Jesus said to him, “Whoever has bathed has no need except to have his feet washed, for he is clean all over; so you are clean, but not all.” For he knew who would betray him; for this reason, he said, “Not all of you are clean.” So when he had washed their feet and put his garments back on and reclined at table again, he said to them, “Do you realize what I have done for you? You call me ‘teacher’ and ‘master,’ and rightly so, for indeed I am. If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet. I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do.”

Especially in the midst of our own suffering and turmoils, it can be easy to forget all that Christ did for us. As well as all that He gave up for us. Had He chosen, he could have avoided all the suffering, all the indignities and pain. Instead, he performed the ultimate act of love by giving up His own life for ours and taking on all our sins. He loves us not only in spite of our sins and flaws, but in the midst of them. All He asks in return, especially in this Lenten season, is our love in return. Small price to pay for all He gave us.

CHALLENGE: Take 3 minutes today to reflect on what it means that God would humble Himself so much to wash the dirty feet of His disciples (the same men that Jesus knew would deny knowing him and who were nowhere to be found hours later when he was arrested)

Wednesday, April 20: by Sarah B.

The Lord GOD has given me a well-trained tongue, that I might know how to speak to the weary a word that will rouse them. Morning after morning he opens my ear that I may hear; And I have not rebelled, have not turned back. I gave my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who plucked my beard; my face I did not shield from buffets and spitting. The Lord GOD is my help, therefore I am not disgraced; I have set my face like flint, knowing that I shall not be put to shame. He is near who upholds my right; if anyone wishes to oppose me, let us appear together. Who disputes my right? Let him confront me. See, the Lord GOD is my help; who will prove me wrong?


We must taste the bitter if we are to enjoy the sweet. Scripture, on this last day before the beginning of the Triduum, allows us to see what will happen to us if we choose to follow Christ’s mission. This passage sets the tone for what begins tomorrow evening with the feast of the Lord’s Supper. In this passage Isaiah is describing the humble ministry of Christ as the suffering servant. Isaiah describes his mission to “…speak to the weary a word that will rouse them.” Who are the weary? The weary are those who at times turn away from Christ, those who do not fully believe that God has his hand in every second of our life. We are ALL the” weary” in whom this passage is referring to. But what is the “word” that will rouse us? It is our hope in God.
Isaiah feels the pains of humiliation and persecution that he undergoes for the sake of God’s word. Those he loves turn away from him, but he somehow finds strength, he is steadfast in the mission that God gave him because of his faith in God. Like Isaiah we will be condemned if we choose to follow Christ, we may lose hope at times. In the midst of all pain and suffering which this decision might incur, we must remember that in the midst of it, the fight has already been fought. A man moved by love and compassion, offered himself as a sacrifice in our place. Like Isaiah we do not deserve or earn the humiliation that we receive for being Christians. But just as Isaiah, we are called to love, serve, honor, and obey the One who gives us hope and saved us.

CHALLENGE: Take a few minutes after mass or communion this weekend to really think of the sacrifice that we were just brought into. Meditate on Christ resting inside of you and the strength that he has just bestowed on you through the Eucharist. Thank Him in a new way for all that he has given you and ask Him to reveal to you the mission he has for in his plan of salvation. Do you
have the strength to boldly speak to the “weary” about Christ in today’s world?

Tuesday, April 19: by Kathy H.

Hear me, O islands, listen, O distant peoples. The Lord called me from birth, from my mother’s womb he gave me my name. He made of me a sharp-edged sword and concealed me in the shadow of his arm. He made me a polished arrow, in his quiver he hid me. You are my servant, he said to me, Israel, through whom I show my glory. Though I thought I had toiled in vain, and for nothing, uselessly, spent my strength, yet my reward is with the Lord, my recompense is with my God. For now the Lord has spoken who formed me as his servant from the womb, that Jacob may be brought back to him and Israel gathered to him; and I am made glorious in the sight of the Lord, and my God is now my strength! It is too little, he says, for you to be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and restore the survivors of Israel; I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.


Thoughts: God created you and has called you. From the very moment of your conception, he has known you. He has great plans for your life. Throughout the Gospel you can hear the call of Jesus to take up your cross and follow him. It is a call to take all the bad stuff, all the sin in life and offer it back up to God to attain freedom. It is to offer up the pain and suffering life brings so you can live in joy and peace. It is his desire for you to live a full life – having fun – celebrating this precious gift he has given. In this way, you will be a true light to the world, loving and living in joy even through the suffering. Blessed Mother Theresa said, "Life is the most beautiful gift of God."

Prayer: Dear God, please help me to see my life as the gift that it is. Thank you for loving me and creating me. Please help me to be your good and faithful servant, and to so in joy, bringing your light to the world. Amen

Challenge: cover your hands in dirt (or charcoal) and rub them together to release the excess dirt. Look at all the lines in your hands and your finger prints. (dirt/charcoal helps you see the it better) Know God designed you just the way you are. He knows every line and curve. Not even identical twins have the same finger prints.

Mediation song: its about Christians just having fun.
http://www.godtube.com/watch/?v=FBB10JNU

Monday, April 18: by Paul C

Thus says God, the LORD, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spreads out the earth with its crops, who gives breath to its people and spirit to those who walk on it: I, the LORD, have called you for the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you, and set you as a covenant of the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness.


Reflection: The victory of justice? A light for the nations? It seems as if God is asking the impossible. After all, I'm just one person and my efforts can't amount to much. But remember that God doesn't see us the way we do. Remember God uses those whom we would call weak to shame the strong. All we have to do is try. We are not the judge our efforts. We do the best we can and trust the Lord to use us in His plan.

CHALLENGE: Don't dismiss the power of a kind word or just a smile. Smile at someone you don't know well or greet them by name, even if their first name is the only thing you know about them. It can really make someone's day,: and yours, too.

Saturday, April 16: by Chip S.

No longer shall they defile themselves with their idols, their abominations, and all their transgressions. I will deliver them from all their sins of apostasy, and cleanse them so that they may be my people and I may be their God. My servant David shall be prince over them, and there shall be one shepherd for them all; they shall live by my statutes and carefully observe my decrees. They shall live on the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where their fathers lived; they shall live on it forever, they, and their children, and their children’s children, with my servant David their prince forever. I will make with them a covenant of peace; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them, and I will multiply them, and put my sanctuary among them forever. My dwelling shall be with them; I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Thus the nations shall know that it is I, the LORD, who make Israel holy, when my sanctuary shall be set up among them forever.


This passage was written by Ezekiel during the Babylonian Exile – when the Jews were being held captive in Babylon and unable to return to the Promised Land of Israel.  Through Ezekiel, the Lord reaffirms His love for them (“…they may be my people and I may be their God.”) and reminds them that they remain His chosen people who will one day return to the land He promised them. We too are living in exile: sin holds us captive and prevents us from living in the Eden (Paradies) that God created for us.  However, unlike the Jews of Babylon, we’re no longer waiting for our Savior.  We have access to Heaven on Earth because Jesus chooses to be truly present to us in the Eucharist!
 
Challenge:  A soul free from sin knows true joy, which is perhaps the best glimpse we can get of Heaven while on Earth.  When was the last time you went to confession?  There are still plenty of opportunities to get there before Easter!

Friday, April 15: by Nate

I hear the whisperings of many: “Terror on every side! Denounce! let us denounce him!” All those who were my friends are on the watch for any misstep of mine. “Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail, and take our vengeance on him.” But the LORD is with me, like a mighty champion: my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph. In their failure they will be put to utter shame, to lasting, unforgettable confusion. O LORD of hosts, you who test the just, who probe mind and heart, Let me witness the vengeance you take on them, for to you I have entrusted my cause.


Sometimes when things aren't going our way it is easy to feel alone, abandoned.  Jeremiah finds himself in one of those spots in this reading as he cries out to God for help.  In just one week we will celebrate Good Friday where we remember Christ's death on the cross for us.  In his death, he joins with us in the worst of our suffering and he joins us in our cry to God for help.  He lets us know that we are never alone in those moments but that even in that aloneness, he is there.

Challenge:  Are you feeling alone or hurting?  Spend some time thinking of Christ on the cross and thank him for being so near even when he feels so far.  Do you know someone who is alone or hurting?  Be Christ to them by spending time with them.  Join your prayers with theirs and with Jeremiah's awaiting God's redemption.

Thursday, April 14: by Christina M.

When Abram prostrated himself, God spoke to him: “My covenant with you is this: you are to become the father of a host of nations. No longer shall you be called Abram; your name shall be Abraham, for I am making you the father of a host of nations. I will render you exceedingly fertile; I will make nations of you; kings shall stem from you. I will maintain my covenant with you and your descendants after you throughout the ages as an everlasting pact, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you. I will give to you and to your descendants after you the land in which you are now staying, the whole land of Canaan, as a permanent possession; and I will be their God.” God also said to Abraham: “On your part, you and your descendants after you must keep my covenant throughout the ages.”

God promises to be faithful to Abraham and to honor the covenant he has made.  He promises to bless him in abundant ways.  However, in return he asks Abraham to keep his part of the deal.  It can often be hard to follow through with our commitments.  Whether it is finishing a task for our parents, completing our homework before we do other things, or even making sure we pray during the day, it sometimes seems like it's hard to be responsible.  Part of growing in holiness is being a man or woman of our word and following through with our commitments, no matter how small or large they may seem.  

Challenge:  Identify some of your commitments/responsibilities as a student, friend, and being part of a family.  Think of some of the promises you've made to people in the past that have been hard for you to keep.  Pick one and work on being faithful to that commitment for the next couple of days.  

Wednesday, April 13:by Brian

Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him, “If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How can you say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin. A slave does not remain in a household forever, but a son always remains. So if the Son frees you, then you will truly be free. I know that you are descendants of Abraham. But you are trying to kill me, because my word has no room among you. I tell you what I have seen in the Father’s presence; then do what you have heard from the Father.”


“The truth will set you free.” What does it mean to be free? Is freedom the ability to do whatever you want, whenever you want? How can sin be slavery if sin is always a free choice? When Jesus talks about the slavery of sin, is He just talking about major sins or just everybody else’s sins? The fact is that sin ALWAYS leads to slavery. We often commit sin thinking that it is just a one-time deal that we can just choose to commit once and then go on with our day. Think of one habitual sin that you regularly commit. Why do you keep choosing this sin over and over? Why haven’t you stopped already? Jesus offers us freedom, but we have to choose to be free.

CHALLENGE: Take a minute and think of one sin that you regularly commit; think of one that you keep coming back to over and over. Do you really want to be free? Ask God to bring you FREEDOM in that area of your life. Take a minute to imagine what it would be like to live in freedom without that sin. Ask God for the grace to be free from attachment to that sin. Thank God for coming to make us free.

Tuesday, April 12: by Sarah McM.

In punishment the LORD sent among the people saraph serpents, which bit the people so that many of them died. Then the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned in complaining against the LORD and you. Pray the LORD to take the serpents away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people, and the LORD said to Moses, “Make a saraph and mount it on a pole, and whoever looks at it after being bitten will live.” Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole, and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.

This passage is later interpreted in Wisdom where it explains that it was not the serpent who healed the people, but rather the mercy of God. The serpent was a sign of the salvation he offers to all people. The serpent was raised by Moses as a symbol of Christ who was to be risen on a cross for our salvation. When Christ is raised above all things he naturally becomes the focal point. Is this something you do in your own life?

CHALLENGE: Today I would challenge you to reflect on the position Christ holds in your life. Is he behind you? Is he next to you? Or is he raised up in front of you so that you and all those around you are drawn to him? If he isn't held in the highest place in your life what is one thing you can do to get him there?

Monday, April 11: by Gigi A.

Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area, and all the people started coming to him, and he sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and made her stand in the middle. They said to him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery. Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” They said this to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger. But when they continued asking him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” Again he bent down and wrote on the ground. And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders. So he was left alone with the woman before him. Then Jesus straightened up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” She replied, “No one, sir.” Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more.”

John 8:7 "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone"
Sometimes, conciously or unconciously, we are like the Scribes and the Pharisees who look down on others. Let us for a minute reflect on that. Do we throw big stones at others? Isn't the mere act of stoning uncharitable whether we do it inconspicuously or throw a small stone? Do we sugarcoat, justify or minimize our condemnations? What about our own sins? Do we continue to "beat ourselves up" after having received His forgiveness in the Sacrament of Reconciliation? Jesus was very clear with His message. Show love and mercy. This is not easy and we can't do it with our own will and strength. Let us ask Him to give us the grace to detest the sin and to love the sinner.
 
Challenge: Today, let us be aware of one thought or act of condemnation and try to look at the person through Jesus' eyes. Oh! and try to go to Penance Service tonight at 7:30 in the Worship Center. He is awesome and merciful.
John 8:11 Then Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go, from now on do not sin anymore."
 

Saturday, April 9: by Robyn H

I knew their plot because the LORD informed me; at that time you, O LORD, showed me their doings. Yet I, like a trusting lamb led to slaughter, had not realized that they were hatching plots against me: “Let us destroy the tree in its vigor; let us cut him off from the land of the living, so that his name will be spoken no more.” But, you, O LORD of hosts, O just Judge, searcher of mind and heart, Let me witness the vengeance you take on them, for to you I have entrusted my cause!

Reflection:  This reading is from the prophet Jeremiah after the Lord has instructed to him to speak to Judah about their wrongdoings and how they've turned from the Lord. It can be daunting to stand up for what's right whether we're an Old Testament prophet or a high school student. But, when we pursue truth and goodness and place our trust in the Lord, He will not fail us. As David says in Pslam 27 "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom do I fear?"
 
 
 
Challenge: Honestly ask yourself today "Do I trust in the Lord"?
If yes, tell Him: "Jesus, I trust in you."  If no, talk to Him about what's holding you back. The Lord is a great listener.
 

Friday, April 8: by Rebecca Black

Jesus moved about within Galilee; he did not wish to travel in Judea, because the Jews were trying to kill him. But the Jewish feast of Tabernacles was near. But when his brothers had gone up to the feast, he himself also went up, not openly but as it were in secret. Some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem said, "Is he not the one they are trying to kill? And look, he is speaking openly and they say nothing to him. Could the authorities have realized that he is the Christ? But we know where he is from. When the Christ comes, no one will know where he is from." So Jesus cried out in the temple area as he was teaching and said, "You know me and also know where I am from. Yet I did not come on my own, but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true. I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me." So they tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand upon him, because his hour had not yet come.


Jesus must’ve seemed crazy. He went from being a humble carpenter to being a wanted man that had to sneak into Jerusalem. But once He rolls into town, He doesn’t hide out or keep quiet. He goes to the Temple, the center of the city, and CRIES OUT fearlessly. Why? Why didn’t He just lay low and wait till He was in a safer place or a town that appreciated Him more? He steps out and risks His life because He will stop at nothing to let people know what God is all about. He isn’t content with just preaching to people who admire Him, He is just as passionate about reaching those that want to take His life. He wants to cry out in Fairfax today, especially in those neighborhoods, homes, and hearts that most badly need to know who He is. And just like He was sent from the Father on a mission, so too are we sent out at the end of every mass. Do we really believe that we are sent, or do we just try to keep out of trouble from Sunday to Sunday?

CHALLENGE: Cry out once today. I don’t mean that you need to scream, but that would be cool I guess. Cry out by sharing the truth with one person today. Maybe that means you tell someone about your own faith even if it’s awkward and uncomfortable. Maybe it means that you let someone know that they are valuable even when everyone else seems to treat them otherwise. The time is now. After all, you’re on a mission.

Thursday, April 7: by MaryClaire G

“I do not accept human praise; moreover, I know that you do not have the love of God in you. I came in the name of my Father, but you do not accept me; yet if another comes in his own name, you will accept him. How can you believe, when you accept praise from one another and do not seek the praise that comes from the only God? Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father: the one who will accuse you is Moses, in whom you have placed your hope. For if you had believed Moses, you would have believed me, because he wrote about me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?”


Keeping our faith and trust alive in God can be very difficult in the secular world we live in and many times, we feel as if He has abandoned us. However, as this passage tells, that is not the case. God always has a plan to each and every one of us. Even if you go through harsh situations and carry heavy burdens, believe and trust that God is and forever will be there for you. He does not put us through things without reason and He will always take care of us. I've personally been through low points of my life where I felt that what God put me through was completely unfair and unnecessary but now as I reflect back to those times, I realize why I had to have those experiences in order to made myself a better person. Unfortunately, we do experiences horrible things because sin exists in the world but keep in mind that God will never put us through things that we cannot handle. Remember that as the passage states, God's love is even stronger than that of a mother. He will never forget us or stop loving us.

Challenge:
Take time today to think about and reflect on what you think God is calling you to do. Pray about your worries and anxieties for the future and ask God to help you through them. If you are currently battling anything in your life and have a hard time seeing a good outcome, know that God is with you and understands what you are going through. Also, if you see anyone around you that has hit a low point, try to comfort them and let them know that God is with them and has not forgotten them.

Wednesday, April 6: by Shannon K.

They shall not hunger or thirst, nor shall the scorching wind or the sun strike them; For he who pities them leads them and guides them beside springs of water. I will cut a road through all my mountains, and make my highways level. See, some shall come from afar, others from the north and the west, and some from the land of Syene. Sing out, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth, break forth into song, you mountains. For the LORD comforts his people and shows mercy to his afflicted. But Zion said, “The LORD has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me.” Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you.


In this passage, Jesus is telling us how often we are blind to the Lord. We must rely on His forgiveness and love to open our eyes to Him. Jesus tells us that we are not able to do this alone, and therefore rely on Him alone to guide us. So often we live our life believing in so much other than our actual God, even listening to those who love the Lord, yet we do not believe in Him on our own. How can we only listen to the words of the past, yet not seek the guidance of our Lord now? We should witness our experiences that He presents us, as He is prominent in our surroundings. God is inviting us to open our eyes and our hearts to the work that Jesus has done, and to tell the world of these great things. With prayer and worship, we should strive to see Him in full glory through Jesus.

CHALLENGE: Try to find God's work around you today, don't let something else blind you. He has done marvelous work and is always surrounding us, so pray to let your eyes be opened so you may witness His love. Let someone know how He has helped you today, either your family, friend, or even a stranger. For we all lack the ability to find every single work of His throughout our day, but by relying on Jesus and His writings we will be able to open our eyes. He does so much everyday since the beginning of time, and continues to amaze us.

Tuesday, April 5: by Michelle O

There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep Gate a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes. In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled. One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him, “Do you want to be well?” The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me.” Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your mat, and walk.” Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked.


Reading this passage, of course we focus on Jesus healing the sick man. Thirty-eight years the man had been ill. Thirty-eight years. That’s plenty of time to become hopeless and demoralized. But Jesus loved and pitied the man and immediately healed him, and so we learn that God helps the hopeless. But what about those left behind? the “large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled”? How many times have we felt hopeless and demoralized, and NOT received immediate healing? How many times have we needed comfort, hope, an answer, a miracle…and God felt so far away? But He has assured us that he is always near and will always provide. “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father takes care of them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Matthew 6:26). Still, when we seek help we must be prepared to accept God’s help in His way, on His timeline. Jon Acuff writes on StuffChristiansLike: “I kept qualifying my cry of ‘help me.’ What I was actually saying was, ‘help me in one of the following ways that I’m used to and have tried before and understand and approve of.’” But that’s not how God works, and approaching our problems in that manner will only frustrate us more. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9) The good news? God doesn’t just offer solutions; he offers a savior.

Challenge:

Think of a struggle in your life right now in which you need God’s help. Invite Christ into that problem. Thank God for the times in your life when he has delivered you from suffering, and trust that He can, and will, do it again—as He sees fit. Be still in His presence, and trusting, wait for His reply. “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.” (Isaiah 26: 3-4)

Monday, April 4: by Leah P.

Thus says the LORD: Lo, I am about to create new heavens and a new earth; The things of the past shall not be remembered
or come to mind. Instead, there shall always be rejoicing and happiness in what I create; For I create Jerusalem to be a joy
and its people to be a delight; I will rejoice in Jerusalem and exult in my people.


So the part of this passage that sticks out to me, is "the things of the past shall not be remembered or come to mind." To me that means, the messed up things we've done will be forgiven. I still remember how bad it hurt to hear that my best friend had been spreading rumors about me in 6th grade, 7 years later and I still remember the sting of her betrayal. It wasn't crazy for me to forgive her, but asking me to forget about an event that ended our friendship, no way. Forgive always, forget never.

But God doesn't work like that. He forgives, and He places our sin “as far as the east is from the west” away from us. He doesn’t hold your past over your head, He forgives and loves you like He has from the beginning. You are His crown jewel, His prized possession, the apple of His eye. You are His and He is mad crazy in love with you. Asking Him to forgive your sins and not hold them against you just seems too good to be true, but its not.

Today's Challenge: go to confession this week. You will be forgiven and your sins will be long gone.

Saturday, April 2: by Alison R.

“Come, let us return to the LORD, it is he who has rent, but he will heal us; he has struck us, but he will bind our wounds. He will revive us after two days; on the third day he will raise us up, to live in his presence. Let us know, let us strive to know the LORD; as certain as the dawn is his coming, and his judgment shines forth like the light of day! He will come to us like the rain, like spring rain that waters the earth.”

Today's verse implores us not to give up on God. Our world today is super secular, except for when we need someone to blame, and it's all too easy to let this way of thinking become ours. This reminds us that He will never test us beyond our measure, and that we need to trust Him. Jesus trusted His Father when He was tempted in the desert for 40 days, when He asked the Father to change His mind in the Garden of Gethsemane, and even on the cross. Giving our whole selves to God means our trust and our hope. If we do this, striving to know the Lord, we will feel Him come to us.

CHALLENGE: Today, notice where God is absent in your life. Is there an aspect that you have particular trouble handing over to Him? When these moments appear today, say a prayer asking for God's help in turning them over to Him, and remind Him and yourself that He will make things better.

Friday, April 1: by Gigi A.

Thus says the LORD: Return, O Israel, to the LORD, your God; you have collapsed through your guilt. Take with you words,
and return to the LORD; Say to him, “Forgive all iniquity, and receive what is good, that we may render as offerings the bullocks from our stalls. Assyria will not save us, nor shall we have horses to mount; We shall say no more, ‘Our god,’ to the work of our hands; for in you the orphan finds compassion.” I will heal their defection, says the LORD, I will love them freely; for my wrath is turned away from them.

How many times have I given in to my sins and guilt instead of simply returning to Him? How many times have I been self-reliant, focused on my moral strength or lack thereof and not on Him? In my darkness and woundedness, with arms outstretched, He constantly calls my name offering compassion, mercy, healing and unconditional love.

CHALLENGE: This Lenten season, may I learn to live without the distractions of my wants and needs and rest on His love for me instead.