St. Benedict of Nursia

The Rector at our church is leading a Lenten study called Soup, Salad, and Spirituality. The idea is that participants partake of Soup, Salad, and of course Spirituality. We are doing a study of The Rule of St. Benedict. At first, you might say, why is there a 'rule' of St. Benedict and why do I need to follow it? I mean, look at his picture...

I mean, this guy looks like the love child of Martin Short and the Bald Sicillian from The Princess Bride. If you disagree, take a gander at these pictures and come to your own conclusions.

Please don't get me wrong. I am sure that forked beards and a single line of hair going around the back of your head drove the ladies nuts back in the day, but c'mon, man!

When you get past this guy's dashing good looks you find out he was a true man of faith. His teachings became the foundation of monastic living. However, we are learning that you don't have to live in a monastary to pursue fulfilling spirituality. Spirituality for me is defined as how your faith influences your attitude and behavior. I do not want to get into a faith vs. works arguement but I have found that my faith is deeper when I do attempt to align my actions in a way that leads me closer to God. When viewed from the outside, monks seem like prisoners held down by strict rules and regulations. But if you look at why their lives are structured the way they are, they have the more freedom than most because they have relinquised control of their lives to the Lord.

Just some of my thoughts while on my journey towards Easter...

New Blog

So, Christy has started another blog. She is trying to be more disciplined about making meals at home instead of eating out or fast food and this is a way that she can hold herself accountable. She reviews every recipie she uses and gives what it cost to make and how it was recieved by the troups: Me, Elisa (Age 4), Ava (Age 2), and Noah (Age 11 mos.). Here is the url

http://supperforsix.blogspot.com

Enjoy!

Kohl's Store Display - 1, Ava - 0

The first day of spring break was quite an eventful one at the Collins'. Christy's Mom, Terry, and her younger sister and brother, Tracy and Jimmy, have been in town visiting for spring break. They all verntured out shopping with the kids yesterday afternoon and at Kohl's, Ava decided that a metal display case was looking at her funny so she had to go show it who was boss. This is a paraphrase of what took place:

Ava "Are you lookin' at me? Are you looking at ME?!?"

Metal Display Case "..."

Ava "Ahhhh, I see how it is! You think you're cool. Just sittin' there holdin' stuff, displaying great deals, two for one terry cloth bath robes, Hillary Duff footwear 30% off. I don't see why you gotta look at me like that!"

Metal Display Case "..."

Ava "See, now you're disrespectin' me! That's too bad 'cause now I'm gonna have to cut you!"

(At this point, Ava pounces forward like a jungle cat, but the inanimate display proves to be too nimble and quick for the young fighter. It is all over too quickly)

This is all happening while Christy and the rest are minding their own business. They hear the something that sounds like a rabid monkey and a feral cat fighting inside a metal garbage can. Once they get to her, Ava is bleeding like crazy from her forehead and then the insanity ensues. The poor store manager, who is now freaking out because everybody seems to have Brian Loncar, the Strong Arm of the Law, on speed dial whenever something bad happens encourages everybody to move to the back of the store so as not to cause a scene. They get her forehead to stop bleeding and then they take her to the hospital.

This...my friends is the result...

The store manager did agree that in case we ever came back, he was just going to transfer that particular display to another store. He said it has always caused trouble. Tripping the elderly, making babies cry, and of course provoking 2 year olds to fistacuffs. Anyway, she is recovering nicely and the stitches will come out next Monday.

Reconciliation of a Penitent

In my particular denomination (Episcopal), reconciliation of a penitent is one of the seven sacraments that are to be administered by the clergy of our church. The other six are Holy Baptism, Holy Eucharist, Anointing of the Sick, Marriage, Ordination, and Confirmation. This particular sacrament is one that I have yet to really take part in. Every Sunday as part of our service, we all kneel and say a general confession of sins and ask the Lord's forgiveness. This corporate confession is where most of us can bring our wrongdoings before God. Sometimes, however there are specific things that we might need to confess. There is an order of service in the Book of Common Prayer that can be followed where we can specifically ask for God's forgiveness. The neat thing about this is that we are not required to do this to earn his forgiveness. We already have it. However, God asks us to seek forgiveness because above all it is good for us and He loves us.

For some, Lent is a time of penitence and repentance and for others it is just about giving up chocolate, alcohol, or coffee. And for some, this season means nothing particular at all except for getting ready for spring. This year, I am learning about the freedom that comes from discipline and submitting to the authority of God. Specifically, Christy and I have constructed our financial life based on justification, rationalization, and to put it bluntly; selfishness. Most of the financial aspects of our marriage has been about us and not about the future of our entire family. We both love our children fiercely but we have been blind to the part of our lives that can do them serious harm in the future.

However, we know that there is freedom in seeking God's forgiveness and repenting of this behavior. We also know that it is the Lord's will for us to use our finances to bless our children and leave them a legacy of character, responsibility, and stewardship. We are going to be dealing with some of the consequences of our decisions for the next few years but I know that this pales in comparison to the peace of knowing that we are submitting ourselves to God.

New Title and Other Musings

So, the name change of the blog might come as a shock because the previous name was so completely awesome that it literally shook the foundations of the earth. However, when it comes to envelopes I prefer to leave the pushing to somebody else. At least I lived on the wild side for a little while!

The weekend was pretty good. We got some cleaning done and did a little bit of hanging out. The weather was really great so we got the kids outside to let them thaw out from the cold weather we have had the past few months. I think that we all look like a family of vampires with pale skin and bloodshot eyes after being inside for such a long time. Hopefully we can begin the re-humanizing process over the next couple of weeks. Until then I will have to make sure we steer clear of wooden stakes and garlic.

We are in the third week of Lent and for the first time I feel that I am getting a good grasp on what the entire purpose of the season is. Easter is a big deal. I mean, a really big deal. It's like the birth of a child or the death of a loved one. If you spend any time thinking about it, you can realize the implications are far more reaching than birth or death. I think that is why we need so much time preparing for it. How can we appreciate the vastness of the victory unless we spend some time thinking about what has been defeated? If we go down into the valley of our own shortcomings and meditate on struggle we can have a much deeper appreciation for the top of the mountain. The air feels cleaner, the sun warmer, and the view more breath-taking.

Sorry for the serious post but I guess this is what has been on my mind.

The Weekenders

Once again I find myself on the precipice of another weekend. We do not have too much planned. This is mainly true because plans usually lead to the consumption of goods or services. The consumption of goods and services mean that something of value must be traded. In our economy, federal reserve notes (or as I like to call them, federal I-don't-have-any notes) are used as currency which hold value. Unfortunately, my winning smile, charm, and incredible good looks do have the same value as the aforementioned notes. So, we are stuck only participating in activities which do not require what is more commonly known as money.

This is quite alright. Since a majority of my family (3 kids, 2 adults; they have a "super" majority) has no real or grasp of currency as it relates to the American and world economy, then we will just let them take the lead. I know that their lack of understanding is real because I see them have more fun with a 10 cent balloon than the $75 Disney Princess Musical Vanity complete with keyboard, mirror, and hairbrush that doubles as a microphone. Since the weather is supposed to be nice, we will probably spend some time in our back yard where all three of my children will proceed to have the very best time covering themselves in dirt and playing with all the great toys that we have in the back.

I can definitely learn something from them. Their experience is truly in the here and now. They do not have the ability to worry about tomorrow or what happened yesterday. Most of us adults can honestly say that there are very few times where we can just be in the moment and appreciate it for what it is. It is just a moment that we can never have back. It is something to be taken, appreciated, and then locked into our memories where our recollection is like looking at an old Polaroid taken years ago where the faces are blurry and the small details are difficult to discern.

Anyway, enough deep thoughts for now. Maybe next time I can bring a little more funny to the table. By the way, this Sunday is the third Sunday in Lent. Take some time to think about the tremendous sacrifices that Christ made while on earth on your and my behalf. Walk humbly with God through this season to prepare your heart for the great mystery of Easter.

Wow, I really create vacuum at this...

(My mom always told me to never say "sucks". She would make my brothers and I say "creates vacuum" instead. The point to that rule, I think was that it was way uncool to say "creates vacuum" so we just wouldn't say anything at all.)

My post today is about how truly terrible my blog is. It has been 5 1/2 months since my last post! I will not give up however. My purpose is true!

So the meat of my post is that Christy and I are expecting our fourth child in August! This is not necessarily planned but not much of our lives are. Christy calls our approach to life "granola" but I prefer to call it "all-natural-organic-with-no-preservatives-added". The high fructose corn-syrup of modern family planning is just too much for our brains to handle. We are however ending our book series, "Spawn d'Collins" after this last installment. The first three books have been funny, horrifying, and emotionally touching all at the same time but the word processor will be permanently "shut-down" upon the safe arrival of the final copy of book 4 from the Publisher. (I could get a little more graphic but I do want people to keep reading.)

I have to admit that the idea of another little person added to the brood made me feel very tired at first. I am now finding myself very excited about meeting the new one and getting him/her into the flow of our strange but loving little family. Christy is doing better with the news as well. Although she has shared concerns about all of her body being in tact after the blessed event occurs. I can't say that I blame her. After this is all over she will have been pregnant for 72% of the past five years. I married a truly incredible woman.

Well, that's all for now. I leave you now with these thoughts,

"Behold, children are a gift of the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth. How blesssed is the man whose quiver is full of them." -Solomon