God Chose Me

I ventured out and attended Mass this past Sunday. It seems I am on an every other week schedule lately. For some reason at times I can't make myself get up and go. (My get up and go, got up and went). Seriously, at times I think, "what's the use?" Obviously these are times I am experiencing depression and deep down looking for excuses not to go.

Growing up Catholic we were raised on guilt, both from our parents and the church. If you don't go to Mass, you're on the highway to hell. We HAD to go every Sunday. That got a little old needless to say and some of us missed the point. One of the points being it enriches our lives....

In discussing this with my fellow Catholic Sandy,I complained that I fight going because I don't seem to get anything out of it and if my attitude is bad, I get even less. She reminded me that it isn't what we get out of it, but what we bring to it. Well that statement made me stop and think. Going to Mass becomes such a habit, a lot of us forget that we participate. I love to sing, that is a gift from God that I return to him.

Sunday we celebrated the Sixth Sunday of Easter and the Readings referenced the greatest command, Love one another as God loves us. We are his friends if we keep his commands. No greater love exists than this, to lay down one's life for a friend.
The next words in the Gospel really got my attention: "For it was not you who chose me, but I who chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain". So there it is..the mission is clear to me now. It would be much easier for me to attend Mass every Sunday if I still belonged to choir and had a reason to be there, something to make me go, but maybe it is better that I have to make a conscious decision to go, with my friend Sandy's voice always in my mind.