Good Friday

Today is Good Friday.  I have grown up, not really celebrating because celebrate would indicate a party of some sort, but remembering this day as a solemn and serious day on the Christian calendar.

That said, I woke up this morning mentally preparing myself for the laundry list of things I have to do today so we can make it to the in laws before it gets too late for Trevor and I to haul our butts out of bed Saturday morning to go work out.  I have laundry to finish and pack including our dress clothes for Sunday, car tags to purchase, a house to straighten up, dishes to finish, not to mention work at my job on a few tasks that MUST be finished today.

Notice what is missing from the paragraph above?

When did Good Friday become just another Friday?

Part of me wants to stand up and yell at people (myself included) for not taking time to recognize today for what it is.  When the movie "Passion of the Christ" came out, I was not a parent.  I cried like a baby throughout the movie and would watch it from time to time to remind myself just how much Jesus willingly gave for us.  I couldn't watch it again after having children of my own.  That whole mommy-empathy kicked in and when I saw Mary watch her son be tortured, I was inconsolable for hours and have not watched the movie since then.

So this is a lecture to myself and to anyone who used to recognize today but allowed normal life to interfere with today.  Take a few minutes (or preferably an hour or two) to reflect on what today is really about.  Sunday we will celebrate the beginning of Christianity with Jesus' resurrection, but today is the day the man was brutally tortured and crucified and did so willingly for all of us.  At the very least, if you consider yourself a Christian and therefore believe and accept what Jesus did for us 2000 years ago, before eating dinner take a few moments and thank him for dying for us on this day.