Embracing Holy week

There were a lot of rules that we needed to follow especially during Good Friday. No game consoles and no playing were some of the things that we cannot do when I was a kid. But at least we were allowed to watch a TV. When I was a kid, I used to watch stories about Jesus together with my brother and my parents during Good Friday and Black Saturday. Every year, it was what has been airing on the television that I almost memorized some of Jesus' words. Back then, there were only a few programs airing during Holy week so they kept on replaying it each year that it came to a point that I would get sad because there was no other shows to watch. You cannot blame a kid whose happiness is only to watch cartoons or play game consoles because it is summertime. Although those were still memorable childhood experience because I have learned about God even when I was still young.

Me watching stories about Jesus changed when I was in high school because there was a new American family drama series that I got to watch on marathon during Black Saturday and that was 7th Heaven. Are you familiar with that series? It was really good that my mom and I would bond together watching it. A series that shows a typical life of a kid, teenager and a married couple that experience the ups and downs of life but they would end it with some teachings. It was because of that drama series that made me excited about growing up even getting a family of my own. We all know that life is not as easy as how we see it on screen and that is what I have realized when I started to experience all the hardships in life. Expectation versus reality. However, one thing that I differ from the series was that they were Christ centered.

Most of you know that I had a renewal of faith almost a decade ago and it was the start for me to be closer to God. Going to churches and hearing the word of God were so meaningful that it made me more emotional to the point of getting teary-eyed especially if I feel like God's word and the priest's homily were pertaining to me. I think I am already old for wanting to watch about God and that I really do enjoy it unlike when I was a kid that I only had no choice because my family were watching it. Our helper and I were just talking about how we wanted to watch a lot about Jesus and how the shows before were better than it is now. We watched The Bible movie yesterday and sadly it was already on part 2. We did not know that they have already aired the part 1 during Maundy Thursday as I really know that movies about Jesus were shown during Good Friday. I also watched Abraham's story last year that was aired on TV but only bits of it as I was suffering from a migraine.

I do not know how much people know about God nowadays but I hope that they would continue to air it on TV all the stories about God whether in cartoon or movie just like how it was before. Like me, there are still a lot of things that I do not know. So watching it on TV especially during Holy week can help us to be deeply rooted in faith. However, I noticed that they only aired 1 program about God during this year's Holy week and the rest were some old romantic movies which is in no way related to reflecting on our own self and getting closer to God.

It saddens me because I feel like there are only a few people who are religiously observing Lent. I admit that I was also guilty of that. I used to think of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday as my vacation because it was the only 2 consecutive rest days that I had when I started working. And it was also the same for my workmates and that means we can go on an outing together. Instead of reflecting on what God has done for all of us and praying for my sins, I was out there enjoying my life to the fullest. We somehow forget the true essence of Holy week. Sad but true right? How did you spend your Holy week or how do you plan to embrace it? Well it is not too late because there is still Easter Sunday.

It was @charmingcherry08 who had mentioned on one of my noisy posts that she had been embracing the Holy week and it gave me an idea to talk about it. Originally my plan was to read more of the bible on Palm Sunday until Easter Sunday but it was only yesterday that I did. Remember that we were so busy last Thursday when we looked for Dice? I know that each of us have different ways on how we observe Lent most especially during Holy week. We all have different priorities but I do hope that we should always remember to put God first in everything. Let us all live a meaningful life.

April 16, 2022

P.S. lead image is a photo I took while watching The Bible movie part 2 last night.