Consider the Commandments

A Reflection on the First Reading for March 3rd, 2024:
Third Sunday of Lent

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Exodus 
20:1-3, 7-8, 12-17 
(Shorter — For the longer version, see the print edition of Living with Christ.)
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God spoke all these words: I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; you shall have no other gods before me.

You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name. Remember the Sabbath day, and keep it holy.

Honour your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour. You shall not covet your neighbour’s house; you shall not covet your neighbour’s wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbour.

Pause. Pray. Reflect.

At first glance, these commandments do not seem difficult. I am a believer and have faith—certainly there are no other gods other than our God. It makes sense to allot some time to worship Him by my attendance at Sunday services, which is part of my weekend routine. Neither will I steal or murder. I am faithful to my spouse.

However, the easy part stops there. When I consider what those commandments involve, do I realize the challenges that they bring about, especially if I factor in the temptations to do otherwise.

The decision to attend Sunday services for instance, when another event like a wedding happens at the same time, can be a challenge. The temptation is to rationalize that there will be another Sunday service next week, but the wedding happens only once. Another example is when I choose to ignore my parents’ advice even if I know that it is the right thing to do. I am after all old enough to think for myself, and my parents do not really know my circumstances. The little white lies that I say to make people think well of me, or just because it makes my life easier somehow, is another example. When I think that someone has better things than me and I wish that I had the same things—add this to the list… and I could go on and on. All of these are nuances of the commandments given to us by God and these pose challenges to truly following the commandments.

I realize that I have a loving and caring God. He always answers my prayers even if they are not answered in the ways I was hoping for. However, my acceptance of that is an answered prayer in itself. With Him by my side, I continue aspire to live a saintly life. My commitment to my faith is my part of the bargain. God will help me, but I too have to help myself! 

Sometimes all I need is to stretch myself a little bit. If I do not want to miss my Sunday service, I can actually go to the services held at other times in other churches. In this time of the pandemic, I can choose to attend online services in any part of the world. It is not really much of a stretch as technology makes it so much easier for me. When my parents were alive, I gave them the respect of delaying or postponing difficult conversations so I could respectfully give them my views. I cannot discount the experience and the wisdom that my parents had which was certainly helpful to my inexperience. 

God loves me, undeserving though I may be. The little that I can do to show Him my love increases my intimacy with Him.




Liz Venezuela
Repost from March 7, 2021

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