Fat Tuesday

Here it is: the day we devote to excess so that we can give something up for Lent, starting tomorrow. Mardi Gras. Which is French, right? For Fat Tuesday. Seriously. I'm not messing with you. It was definitely a day of excess, none of which I will elaborate upon, save that it ended with 1/4 of a peanut butter pie covered in whipped cream and I crumbled some Reese's Cups on top of it, because apparently it was not decadent enough the way it was when we purchased it from the Essenhaus restaurant. It needed MORE.

Tomorrow begins a new leg of the journey. This is my new favorite passage:

ROMANS 12:

v9 "Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

v14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.

v17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 On the contrary:

'If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.'

v21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

So much knowledge, basic humanitarian wisdom, is found in this particular passage. I've heard bits and pieces of it quoted, but not as often as other passages. I spend so much of my life not at peace, that the idea of being at peace seems so foreign. And I don't even know where to begin. Therefore, the new leg of the journey. I won't go into detail yet, but I'll fill you in as I go along. Suffice to say that it includes living sacrificially, being brutally honest with myself, and (God willing) learning quite a lot about who I am really meant to be.

I'd like to take this moment to thank my new follower, whoever you might be. I noticed that my readership went up, and it's because of YOU :) Thanks for stopping by! And all of you, please tell your friends, or post this on your Facebook/blog, too. The more, the merrier. I appreciate having more readers because it keeps me writing, and keeps me motivated and encouraged. And you thought you were just quietly reading along, didn't ya?

Ahh, Parenthood is almost on. What a fantastic show. I do hope you'll give it a try if you've never watched it before. I love every character on there!

Here's to Lent -- to sacrifice, to renewal, to wisdom, to evolution of the spirit. Wishing you all the very best.

Stephanie Jean