Today, we seem to have forgotten what God has mandated for us.  We have turned our faces from Him in an effort to be free to follow our own dogmas, allowing the pace of modern life to dictate rules and tenets of social and private behavior.

Something is drastically changing and causing many faithful, Catholic Christians to take an unbelieving look at what people are doing.  With time, the unfamiliar becomes familiar and it is then that acceptance of modern behavior becomes commonplace for those who are blinded to God’s rules.  From the sidelines, the faithful are appalled as they watch current trends and faulty logic overtake the “wisdom” of what is right and what is wrong; twisting it to fit into the present day lifestyles.   And some people have succumbed and even joined the masses in justifying the “new codes of behavior”.   Salvation is ignored, modified, cast away or laid to the side of our consciences as actions forbidden by God gain approval. Our own self taught wisdom, desires, and needs of this earthly world decree that “Free Will”, a gift freely given by God, be enhanced or revised to include our new way of thinking.  Free Will" then can become “me”, “what I want”, and   “what I need” heading the line of sin. 

Why then did God give Free Will to us?  Because He wanted us to freely choose Him and to love and know Him as our Heavenly Father.  Once we accept and say “Yes” to the salvation offered through the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ, that acceptance comes with the mantle of Christian attitudes and beliefs,  transforming and strengthening us in faith, trust, and obedience.

Today we continue to re-write many of the God given standards we do not “like”, permitting ourselves to commit acts that we know full well are wrong in the eyes of the Lord.  Why?  Because we fail to let God guide us in all things, instead choosing to live according to the current dictates of  the world. We angle our thinking to include the forbidden, fancying them up with creative and acceptable names.  It is not “Thy Will be done as it is in Heaven” but becomes "my will as it is done for ME”.

Keep in mind that our time here on earth is short.  We are stamped with a limited and earthly expiration date.  See James 4:14 that reads: "How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog...it’s here a little while, then it’s gone." Why then, do we gamble on the uncertain longevity of time to love and obey the Lord?

When it comes down to moral surety and conviction, the only rights we have, as God’s creation, is GOD’S certitude, His commandments, and His rulings.  Sometimes, in the heat of “self” and what we think we need or deserve to have, and what we think is best for us, we lose sight of how He wants us to live to insure  eternal life. 

The bible is our handbook of truth.  When God tells us NOT to do something, and we do it anyway, then we must pay the price set aside for those of us who sin.  There are NO angles and NO loopholes.  None.  God hates sin and WILL NOT allow it to be brought into His perfect paradise.  It cannot be glossed over, explained away, or blamed on our current and modern day society or current trends.  It is not someone else’s fault that we stain ourselves with Satan’s sins through our own choice.  The “it's all good” theory is not acceptable to God.  If we repeatedly disobey Him without conscience or rectification,  then we make the decision to “put back” Jesus’ gift of salvation at the foot of the cross and continue on our way.  And unless we get forgiveness from God and amend our actions, we will not enter into God's sinless heaven.  There is no place for unrepentant sinners in God's paradise.

IF we choose to halt God’s anger, we must repent of our sins and ask God to forgive us and truly mean it.  "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and will cleanse us from all unrighteous." 1 John 1:9.  God not only forgives our sins when we repent, He erases our sin from His memory.  Psalms 103:12 tells us  "He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west."  

Be forgiving of others.  Abstain from lying, cheating or sexual immorality.   Refrain from thievery and dishonesty.  Emulate the gentleness and love that Jesus shows to us.  If we have indulged ourselves in sex sin, taking the life of unborn babies, or pursued any avenue that God forbids, we MUST reconcile ourselves with God, the Church and all its members by going to confession. God WILL FORGIVE any sin.  But we must ask for this special gift and promise to never indulge in that sin again.  Galatians 5:19-21 clearly states  “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these: fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousies, wrath, factions, divisions, parties (wild and uncontrollable), envyings, drunkenness, reveling, and such like; of which I forewarn you, even as I did forewarn you, that they who practice such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Sometimes we fail to use the God given strength and courage He gives us to avoid the ravages of sin.  We forget for a time that sin is a thief who steals our faith if  we allow it entry.   It can also steal our salvation if we let it fester within us.  But God is a God of mercy and He has provided an antidote to all who are enslaved by sin;  He gave us Jesus Christ.  We can choose to accept Him and His teachings or we can turn away and continue in our quest for temporary joys.

None of us is without sin.  We all fall short of the glory of God.  But it really does not matter how rebellious we are toward God, He stands waiting to forgive us.  He proved His love once and for all at the Cross, when He gave up His Only Son to be crucified and to shed His blood for us. Through His loving grace, He gives each of us a chance to overcome our sinful nature so we can live Christian lives.   Jesus tells us in John 15:9   "I have loved you even as My Father has loved Me.  Remain in My love".