I could fill this post with example after example of the church doing more damage to the name of Christ than I care to go into. So I won’t. Other than to say, I know there are still good, caring, loving, non-judgmental Christians within most of the Church buildings. Unfortunately, they are not the ones standing at the front spouting modern day Pharisee bullshit, in my opinion. Christ’s church was based on love and forgiveness, but somehow this has been lost in the rhetoric being spouted by mere men working hard to establish their own little kingdoms here on earth. Kingdoms that are measured by headcounts and the amount of tithes. If I had a message to the people of Christ’s church, (which I consider myself to be part of) it would be to open your Bible, and question what is being preached. Study it, and know what His message was and is. Pay particular attention to Christ’s responses to the Pharisees, and the buying and selling that was going on in His temple. In studying the life of Christ, I would say this was the strongest if not only example where Christ was angry. I think it speaks volumes.

Janet, from The Art of Getting By, made a joke about my Easter post following on the heels of “what are your deadly sins.” She thought the placement was off. I laughed and in a sense, saw her point. But in a very real sense, saw the relevance of the placement. Easter is all about the need for a Savior. My sins will attest to that. My sins will not beat me down, nor make me feel bad about myself. I rejoice in a Savior who covers my sins. And pray daily for guidance. Unfortunately I see church leaders as manipulating the “flock” with damnation that should no longer exist, if you are a Christian. I see church leadership saying “hang your brain up now, since you’re a Christian. We will lead your way.” I’m sorry if this is contrary to what any of you believe, as I know this is only my opinion. But then, this is my space to state it.

OK, this honestly didn’t start out to be a rant on the church, but then it is Monday which usually finds me in a particularly flat mood, if not slightly sour.

After all the kids got back from the church service, we took them to the Fiesta Inn Resort for Easter brunch, where they all got their fill of whatever they enjoyed most. We came home and Kevin and I hid the plastic eggs, in the backyard, filled with quarters, dollar bills and one with a five dollar bill that determined the winner of our game. Nothing did I enjoy more than watching not only the rugrats but Robby and Cheryl running around the yard looking for eggs filled with money. No, this has nothing to do with the true meaning of Easter. It was purely for the fun of it! And we all enjoyed the game. Another ritual that has developed over the years is that I give five dollars to the person who christens the pool for the first time at the beginning of the warm weather. Which is saying something when you take into account the pool is unheated and pretty frigid in temperature at the beginning of the warm weather. Tayler took the plunge, and the five dollar bill. Robby once again won the egg hunt, with the notification that next year he is ineligible to participate. (It was with mixed feelings, that I gave him the news) He is going to be 22 and married by this time next year.

Well I’ve rambled on more than I intended to. I hope everyone has at the least a pleasant Monday, and took a few good memories away from the Easter / Passover Weekend.