If God is so Good, why is Bacon so Bad?!

For some reason whenever I think of Bacon, I think of it as something manly. There is something about bacon that men are just attracted to. In fact, in college there was this girl who went around to all of the male dorms and made bacon in the kitchen just because. She became known as "bacon girl." 

(In case you missed it, I went to an incredibly strange college--I'm still not convinced it was real) 

Just thinking of bacon makes my mouth my water. My best bacon experience by far was this past summer. There is this restaurant in California called Slater's 50/50. Its called that because their burgers are made with 50% ground beef and 50% ground BACON!! If that wasn't awesome enough, it gets more awesome!

Every month, they have a special burger. In August, they serve a burger that is so spicy that the cooks have to wear gloves and masks and the patrons have to sign a liability waiver; if the sauce gets in your eyes, you could go blind. Now I know you're thinking, "That's both stupid spicy, and has absolutely nothing to do with bacon." Patience young padawan...

So in July, right before I left California for Wisconsin, Slater's 50/50 sells the Ultimate Bacon Burger:

This messy looking work of art is the Paradise for bacon lovers. It is a 1lb patty--weighed after it was cooked--made of 100% ground bacon. Then they put slices of bacon on it. Then, a poached egg. Then, "Bacon-Island" Dressing. And finally, they slather bacon grease on the bun before toasting it. Finish that off with Slater 50/50's famous Bacon Brownie, and it is a recipe for the best "Fat Tuesday" meal ever (if only I was still in California!)

So here I am, about one week into Lent, mouth just watering for Bacon. So bear with me as I draw a belabored analogy between bacon and Lent. If you noticed the title of this particular blog, it asks why, if God is so good, bacon is so bad. Bacon is incredibly unhealthy for you. Even in small doses, it is just full of fat. Therefore, although God is good, it is in our best interest to not eat large amounts of bacon. We sacrifice the wonderful, delicious, savory, heavenly flavor of bacon, in exchange for better health. 

Lent is very much the same. We sacrifice something that is good for something better. Lent is a time for sacrifice. Typically we give something up for Lent. For some reason, chocolate seems to be the favorite "thing" to give up for Lent. So what do we get that is better when we give up chocolate? Well traditionally, we give the money saved from our sacrifice to charity. So if we give up chocolate we get the opportunity to develop virtue.

Our sacrifices are not meant to be ends in themselves. Our sacrifice is supposed to lead us to something greater. This is always how we sacrifice in the Christian life. We sacrifice for a purpose. During Lent, we sacrifice in order to unite ourselves with Christ. We fast in order to prepare ourselves in order to better celebrate the Resurrection. We fast in order to help us live in the freedom that Christ won for us.

This Lent, let us continue to sacrifice for the sake of Christ. Let us continue to unite our fast to His. Let us continue to look to receive the eternal good that comes from sacrificing the temporary good. Let us continue to seek the life that Christ offers us, life to its fullest. 

God love you!