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and donations of food for the traditional feast following the funeral/burial. Despite my commitment to providing reasonably priced services and merchandise, I occasionally wish that more families would come from reservations that provide a decent funeral stipend.

Loving our neighbors as we love ourselves sounds easier than it is. It means that we can't walk through life with our eyes cast down and never acknowledging our neighbors. It also means that we must be involved in our communities, our nation and the world advocating for those who have no voices. Those of us who do not have children must recognize other's children for more that running across our lawns and knocking down an occasional plant. These children must hear the voice of Jesus through us as we inquire about school, congratulate them on their achievements, provide good examples of adulthood.

As in many churches, we have children as altar servers (acolytes). I can become so frustrated watching a 12 year old pull at her hair, or an 8 year old who needs to lean his head back and stretch out his legs during a sermon. We have crucifix twirlers, altar leaners, sermon yawners, and many more...all of which make me think of them as anyone but Jesus!

Despite our earnest daily attention to reaching out to our neighbors as we would Jesus, most of us struggle throughout our lives. I believe that the mitigation of our failures is our determination to be more aware of our neighbor; to be less judgmental of those whose life styles are not pleasant to observe and which make us uncomfortable. The message Jesus left us is not one that says "sit back, relax, and you'll attain heaven." Instead, we are challenged every minute of every day to treat our neighbors as we would Jesus; to recognize them in everyone we meet and to respond in a Christ-like way to them.

I was mistaken when I began; it really isn't easier to get into a poorly rated college than it is to attain heaven. Jesus demands that we focus on the people of God every day, in many places and situations. He expects that if we can spend a couple dollars on a meal, that we can spare a couple more dollars so another can eat at least as well as we have. Despite our aversion to inebriated people struggling down the street, we are expected to make sure they aren't struck by a car, or injured when falling on the sidewalk, or mocked by kids with nothing better to do.

Striving for and "getting into" heaven is a lifelong process. "Hold on a minute.....can I help you write that article for Helium?"

Learn more about this author, Claudia Windal.
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