My So-Called Purpose Driven Life

I totally got this brainiac idea from a girl at church. She's reading this book-a 40 day introspective approach to life because she "needed something to do". I'm doing it out of curiosity, and because I think part of me is turning into my dad. He wins the award for owning, reading, and analyzing the most spiritual, self-help books there are on the shelves. Or at least owning them and intending to read them. He's got as many books queued up as Borders has in their bargain bins....

So far I'm on day three and it's an interesting little venture. I guess my problem lies in the thought that "God designed you. Everything you do, and are is God's plan". I don't really like that line of thinking, because in my mind, it negates any ownership of responsibility. Like, "Well, I stole that car, but it's okay because it was God's plan and part of his purpose for me." I have a VERY hard time with the idea that some poor guy died to absolve me of my sins, because even if it is true, there are too many people out there who use THAT as an excuse to not be really good people. The whole notion of people who go to church regularly being pious, good people is a misnomer, because while those people do exist, I've seen far more that indulge in the thought process of being a Christian for pretty much 2 hours on a Sunday morning, and then forgetting the message the rest of the week.

I wish there was some way to mesh my thoughts all together. I really like some things the Dalai Lama has to say on religion, and faith in general. I really felt a sense of peace, and was in awe when I attended a Bat Mitzvah for a former student of mine last year. I can appreciate the ceremony imbedded into Catholic beliefs. I really LOVE that the church and faith I choose to worship in encourages me to question everything, and so I will continue to do so.

At the very least, with this Purpose Driven Life, I'll gain some insight into myself. It's worth a shot anyway.

And if not, I can always raid my dad's bookshelf.