A covenant remembered

 

As I reflected on my Scriptures today, three lines in particular led my thinking:

"This is what you shall tell the Israelites: I AM sent me to you."  (Exodus 3:11-20)

"The Lord remembers his covenant forever."  (Psalms 105:1-27)

"Come to me, all you who are weary and find life burdensome, and I will refresh you."  (Matthew 11:28-30)

I have to confess that I sometimes find some aspects of life to be "burdensome."  And there are those days when I feel "weary."  I try to tell myself that it’s no big deal.  I know so many people who have to face burdens and relentless challenges I probably won’t ever know.  And whenever I'm tempted to some measure of self-pity, I'm reminded of the millions of people on this earth who live in unspeakable hardship.

And so, I'm embarrassed to confess that there are times when, instead of coming to Jesus with my burdens and weariness, I've taken comfort elsewhere.  Perhaps we all do it to some degree.  "I need a drink."  "I need to just sit here and wallow in some self-pity."  "Why shouldn't I be a little self-indulgent; everybody else seems to be?"  "I'm just going to be a crabby tyrant for a while, because that's how I felt treated all day."  "The people who are supposed to care for me don't seem to, so I'm going to take some care from those who do care for me."

Of course, the "refreshment" we take in these, and other ways can range from mere relaxation to serious self-destruction.  And, when it moves us to a more self-seeking or nasty place, the worst effect it has on us is that it numbs or completely disables our compassion for others.  I've never known myself, at least, to be self-absorbed and compassionate at the same time.

When things get heavy, Jesus invites us to turn to him.  He promises real refreshment.  A real rest for our souls.

His perspective-changing invitation tells us that all that we thought we were bearing alone are really His burdens!  All that we carry each day—from our past to what we face in the future—and all we endure and labor hard for, sometimes even to survive, are all really His cares and His concerns.  They weigh on Him.  He is, after all, the Lover of us all.  And He bears it so gently, so humbly.  So much to learn from Him in that.

Jesus invites us to see it all a different way.  He invites us to imagine a wonderful image.  He's pulling all that we face—like an ox pulling a wagon.  And He invites us to share the yoke with Him.  We’re not alone, and the burden is "light."  What an incredible image of any marriage, any partnership.  "You are not alone in any of your burdens.  Come, let's do it, let's be in it together.  Let's share the journey and its joys and sorrows together."

Side-by-side with Jesus, sharing our burdens together, the day is a lot lighter.  And I'm looking around to my brothers and sisters, near me and around the world, feeling how hard it must be to bear burdens alone.  I wish I could make them aware that they’re not alone, that the Hope of Christ is always with us.

The simple confidence of the childlike.

 

“I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike.” (Matthew 11:25-27)

Nearly 40 years ago, Sister Enza Maria approached me about teaching CCD.  I told her I didn’t know anything about teaching, and what I knew about the Catechism of the Catholic Church was limited to what I was getting at Mass. “Don’t worry,” Sister said, “You’ll be teaching 1st graders who know less than you do!  And I have a feeling you know more than you think!”

On the very first day, I was tested by the kids. The day’s lesson was the story of creation (Genesis 1) condensed and written for first graders.  When we got to the part about “God created the Heavens and the Earth and saw that it was good” the questions began—and kept coming with rapid-fire speed.  “Did He make Mommy and Daddy?”  Yes.  (Hey, they were first graders, and I wasn’t teaching biology!) “Did He make the trees?”  Yes.  “Did He make this desk?”  “Well, sort of.  He created the trees and the men who cut the trees into wood and the men who assembled the desk.”  “Did He make my dolly?”  “Did He make the ocean?”  At some point, I felt as though I had lost control.  I know I was frustrated; I wasn’t prepared for the barrage of innocent questions.  The class ran for an hour and a half.  After dismissal that morning, I immediately went to Sister Enza and told her I didn’t think I was cut out for the task.  She encouraged me and told me the toughest day was behind me; now I knew what to expect!  She was right, of course.  It did become easier.  As the classes went on I realized I was learning something, too! 

The most important lesson I learned was that in their simplicity of thought, the kids were like sponges.  I spent the whole semester introducing them to God as a loving Creator whose sole purpose in creating us is to spend eternity with Him in Heaven.   Several of the parents would tell me later that their children would come home excited to share what they learned from “Mister Steve”.   I wonder if their excitement was the same that the Apostles felt when they heard Jesus speak for the first time.  How I hope that was the case!

Another lesson I learned was that when we’re full of ourselves there’s no room for anything else.  When we claim to know the truths of the faith and the secrets of God, what room is there for God to tell us about Himself?

What God desires is our simplicity -- our childlike wonder and awe at how wonderful things are.  We should all take a moment or two each day and just look at one of our hands.  Think about how it can move.  Think about all of the things that make it possible -- the muscles, the bones, the blood vessels, how they are all put together.  The opposable thumb.  Something as simple and everyday as our hand is full of wonder if we just take a moment to consider it.

Going back to the children, that's what God wants of us, to see Him in all that is, because everything around us is a wonder.  Everything!  We ourselves are miracles from conception to death.  It’s this childlike awe that opens us up to see the magnificence that is the Loving Father.

It’s a good spiritual exercise to spend a few minutes and contemplate the beauty of all that is, the wonder of God Himself.  And in those moments, let God speak to us.  He will.  He will use our openness and visit with us and reveal more and more of Himself.

As I tried to teach those first-graders, that’s the way God works.

Remember the wonders the Lord has done

 

“Jesus began to reproach the towns where most of his mighty deeds had been done, since they had not repented.” (Matthew 11:20-24)

Throughout the gospels, we read of Jesus performing many miracles, both in crowds and in more intimate settings, and it can seem to us that the people of His time should have believed in Him more readily and more profoundly with evidence such as that.  And we wish that we could have seen those miracles ourselves, that we had been touched just as personally by Jesus.

I think we have been!  I’m not thinking of the times that we pray for God to grant us a healing or the easing of a family situation:  it’s too hard to sort the supernatural out from the natural in such cases on an individual basis when our prayers are answered.  I refer rather to our direct and constant experience of God in our lives, how He walks with us at every moment and wherever we go.

Even though His touch is gentle, and His soft words audible only to those who listen attentively, we don’t leave our prayer and move into our daily lives without being changed by His presence, not in a visible or superficial way but deep down where we really live and grow.  I consider the way that God has changed me in particular over the years to be nothing short of supernatural, nothing a rational or natural cause could sufficiently explain.  Beyond my very existence being God's first (but not greatest) gift to me, His continuing presence, love, and guidance, His care for someone as hidden and insignificant as each of us is, is His greatest and most commonplace miracle.

I believe that this is a good part of what Mary meant in her "Magnificat" (Luke 1:46-55), although she was far more aware of God's ready and active presence than we are.

We shouldn’t look at some other time or in some other place for God's miracles or His action in this world but in the most obvious and important place, our very own lives.

Peace

 

In Matthew’s gospel, Jesus says to us: "Do not think that I have come to bring peace upon the earth.  I have come to bring not peace but the sword."  (Matthew 10:34-11:1)

PEACE.  It doesn’t mean to be in a place where there’s no noise, trouble or hard work.  It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart.

I remember one time when I was especially frantic and worried for tomorrow.  There were problems at work, at home, and in the world.  I finally threw my hands in the air and announced to whoever would listen that I was taking off for the day, and that I would not be able to be reached.  Then I got in my car and drove with no particular destination in mind.  Somehow, I ended up in a secluded grove of trees next to a beautiful lake with no one around but the birds singing a melodious tune.  It was almost “Disneyesque”.   Then I prayed my Rosary.  All of my worries and anxieties and problems melted into the scene.  I thought to myself, “It just doesn’t get any better than this!”  I was at peace. 

When we’re in peaceful situations, it’s easy to feel, to sense, to exude peace.  Of course, Jesus brings us His peace in His own way, which so often surprises and baffles us.  He gives us peace, when, after reflecting on a family or community disagreement, we have the courage to ask for forgiveness.  God gives us peace when we reflect upon the lives of the prophets and how they persevered in getting God’s word across to the people: "Peace, peace, they say, though there is no peace". (Jeremiah 6:14)

Jesus’ peace is many faceted, giving us consolation in the midst of mourning, challenging us to confront injustice.  It’s the peace we long for, not only for ourselves and for our own, but for whole nations, especially the Middle East and most other ‘third world’ countries.  It’s the peace that the Hebrew people, experiencing their cruel slavery in Egypt longed for (Exodus 1:8-22).

May the peace of Christ fill our being.  May we be channels of peace to others.

God is in control

 

We’re blessed to have the Bible and our inspired pastors, priests, church leaders, and parents to teach us and lead us.  But I have to wonder if that’s enough.  Is it OK to leave the “God stuff” to others, to those “called”?  I think Scripture provides some unmistakably clear answers to that question.

Amos wasn’t a priest, but simply a farmer, an ordinary man living in a small town a few miles south of Bethlehem.  That sounds a lot like me – a simple ordinary man - and yet God called Amos to deliver an important message to the people of Israel.  Perhaps the most amazing part of Amos’ story is not his message, but that he simply listened and obeyed.  He didn’t come up with a list of excuses or reasons why he wasn’t the right man for the job.  He simply responded to God’s call with courage and faith (Amos 7:12-15).

The Psalms point to the results that Amos (and each of us) can expect.  If we listen to God and are wise enough to trust Him, then God will be able to use us in His holy plan (Psalms 85:9-14).

In a letter to the Ephesians, Paul reminds us that God chose us before the foundation of the world.  He destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ.  I get the feeling he doesn’t expected us to sit back and let others do the work of pointing our brothers and sisters to Jesus.  But I’m not trained, I’m just an ordinary man; how could I possibly be called by the God of the universe to do anything so important?  Paul forcefully responds to that fear by reminding us that God has lavished His grace upon us, and that God has provided us with all “wisdom and insight” into the mystery of His will in accordance with His favor (Ephesians 1:3-14).  We’re a part of His amazing plan.  “In Him, we were also chosen, destined….”   That fact is just so breathtaking - that God all along had me as a part of His plan.  As with Amos, God provides us with all that’s needed to follow His will for our life, to truly make a difference; to make a profound difference for eternity.

But the message doesn’t end with the letter to the Ephesians.  In Mark’s gospel, Jesus tells us that we need not worry that we may not have what it takes to complete God’s plan for our life.  We simply need to trust that He is with us and that He will provide everything we need.  The disciples, all simple ordinary men, grasped this truth and were able to share the good news of Jesus with power and effectiveness well beyond anything they could ever have imagined (Mark 6:7-13).  God used each of them just like He’s planned to use each of us.

We are God's vanguard. We are His sons and daughters

 

After 10 minutes on social media this morning, I was drawn to reflect on the enormity and complexity of the forces of evil in our lives and our world.  It seems we don’t know how to cope with them, we can’t deal with them on our own, and we can’t stop them—let alone destroy them!

I came up with a comparatively small list illustrating the work perpetrated by the forces of evil and their effect on our lives and our world:

The human neglect and exploitation of the earth’s ecology.

The increased (or more accurately reports of) outbursts of racism in the world, especially in the US.

The modern form of slavery we call human trafficking, with its illegal smuggling and trading of people for forced labor or sexual exploitation.

The continued injustice meted out to immigrants looking to escape violence and poverty in their own countries.

The neglect by commercial businesses of their responsibility to work for economic justice and equality and to avoid corruption.

The deep enmity between the perpetrators of war and their adversaries, while the victims of war are left to suffer and die.

Global terrorism.

Overcoming any one of the items in this partial list of evils appears overwhelming. Taken together, they seem impossible to cope with, stop, and destroy.

St. Ignatius of Loyola identified three roots of evil.  He called them the “Standards of Satan” which characterize the troops of his army:  greed, self-centered ambition, and arrogant pride.  Ignatius also identified three counteracting Christian virtues:  spiritual poverty, a readiness to suffer insults and humiliation for the sake of God’s Kingdom, and humility.  He described these as “Standards of Christ” – or characteristics of those who follow Him.

Christ’s exhortation in Matthew’s Gospel (Matthew 10:24-33) is addressed to His followers — a kind of “call to arms” for combat against Satan’s troops and the forces of evil:

Do not be afraid of this battle.  I am with you. I will protect you.  Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin?   Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father’s knowledge.  Even all the hairs of your head are counted. 

Don’t be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.  Satan’s army can kill the body.  Think of our Martyrs from the early Church to the present.  Think of Christ confronting the clique of Pharisees who insulted Him, humiliated Him, and had Him put to an ignominious death.

What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light; what you hear whispered, proclaim from the housetops.  Think of Christ shining into the darkness with you, in you and through you—publicly revealing truth and justice and showing the forces of evil for what they are.

Nothing is concealed that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be known.  Think of the Lord’s inevitable destruction of the forces of evil, to be seen when time gives way to eternity and Christ ascended returns to bring God’s Kingdom to its fullness.

The bottom line for of today's gospel message is this.  You are worth more than whole flocks of sparrows; the Father knows and cares about you in every detail of your life, even as you face the temptations and dangers which may surround you.  We can expect attacks at all levels from Satan, or the forces of evil.  But we should remember that the one we’re serving is stronger than the strongest opponent we’ll ever meet.  Follow me, and I will enrich you with a poverty of spirit, steel you in the face of insult and humiliation, and ground you in my own humility as you pursue God’s will to deal with what the world thinks is impossible to achieve.

Remember, nothing is impossible for God, and God assures us of success.  We are God’s vanguard.  We are God’s sons and daughters.

Sheep among wolves

 

Saint Paul confronted those who said that our mission from the Lord to go into the world like sheep among wolves is “folly” (1 Corinthians 1:23).

Who are the wolves?

They’re men and women driven by the forces of evil.  Forces like greed, self-centered ambition, and arrogant pride.

These forces are strong in our world.  We’ve all succumbed to one or more of them at one time or another.   When we do, and recognize in the process that we demean, compromise, or injure others, we confess that we’ve sinned.  We’re all very vulnerable to these forces.  They wear attractive masks, and they can become addictive.  When the forces are victorious, their victims often become their agents, and they are the wolves – like the terrorists who called the shots for 9/11.  Or the pornographers and child abusers, the hucksters who become sensationalists in news and entertainment, the petty thieves and the men and women unfaithful to their spouses.  All these agents are the greedy, selfishly ambitious, and arrogant ones.

That’s why I look for and enjoy stories of courage, especially moral courage, in today’s world.  I find such tales moving and fascinating because they speak to the essence of human potential – especially stories of ordinary people who perform extraordinary deeds.

Where did ordinary European Christians find the guts to shelter Jews in Nazi Germany?  How did black farmers in Mississippi find the strength to try to register to vote in the early 1960’s?  What gave these people the fortitude to do what so many others failed to do?

Matthew’s gospel suggests the source of such moral courage: “Behold I am sending you like sheep into the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and simple as doves . . . When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say.   You will be given at that moment what you are to say.  For it will not be you who speak but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” (Matthew 10:16-23).

These ordinary, unsung heroes were people of faith.  They believed that if they took risks to do the right thing, they would receive the guidance and strength they needed.  Their actions might have a terrible price, but they weren’t alone because they believed that God would help them when they needed it most.

This is also true for those of us fortunate enough to plod through relatively safe lives in safe places.  Even though, mercifully, heroism probably isn’t demanded, with faith in God’s help we can all demonstrate moral courage.

We can speak out against war and violence.  Even attending a peace rally or vigil says something important.  If that offends someone, fine.

We can voice our disapproval when people use derogatory terms disparaging other people or shun a co-worker.  If that annoys someone, too bad.  God isn’t asking us to be popular.

We can leave our comfort zones to help other people.  If this scares us, we need to face down our fears.  Jesus asks us to be brave in living the Gospel.  The rewards of even such mundane moral courage are immense.  The gospel promises that “whoever endures to the end will be saved.”

Delegation 101

 

Throughout my almost 5 decades in retail management, I had the opportunity to attend many, many instructional seminars on how to become a better manager.  I daresay the one constant in every one of the classes was a discussion on how to delegate tasks and authority.  The key to good delegation is to be specific, simple, clear, and direct.  Find the right people for the job, and trust those to whom you delegate to.  Give them the tools or knowledge they need to complete the tasks.  It’s best not to micro-manage good people.  Good leaders don't wrap things in mystery, and they are there to provide guidance and support.

Jesus told His disciples, "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons.  You received without paying, now give without pay.  Take no gold, nor silver, nor copper in your belts, no bag for your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor a staff .... " (Matthew 10:7-15)

I love Jesus' clarity, confidence and common sense.  The missioning described in Matthew’s gospel is simple, direct.  He trusts the good judgment of His people.  He trusts His own wisdom.  He betrays no need to control.  He just wants the job done.  He's clear about the task ahead and advises how to steer around distractions or difficulties.

I’m fairly certain that I won't be raising the dead or cleansing lepers today; that’s not my forte, and Jesus knows it.  So what is the mission Jesus is sending me on?  A kind word to someone in need of it?  A sincere offer of support to one in need?  A genuine expression of gratitude?  A work or homeplace task?  I'll get it done with Jesus' help.  The extras, distractions, that I need to leave behind include destructive anger, resentments, pride and jealousy.

OK, Lord, I'm ready to go.  Send me.

We're sent despite our flaws

 

In Matthew’s gospel, we read about Jesus sending out His closest twelve disciples—His friends—to spread His message: “the Kingdom of God is at hand” (Matthew 10:1-7).   He sends them to do the critical work of evangelizing and healing.  Drive out unclean spirits and cure every disease.  He gives them “authority” over unclean spirits.

Seriously?  Did He check their resumes?  These aren’t men who are powerful leaders.

The group includes Peter, a man so afraid of getting into trouble that he eventually would lie about even knowing Jesus (John 18:15-27).  James and John argued over which one of them would be remembered as the greatest of the disciples (Mark 10:35-45).  Thomas simply couldn’t believe that Jesus had risen from the dead until he saw it with his own eyes (John 20:24-29).  Matthew was a despised tax collector (Matthew 9:9-13).  And Judas was a close friend whose name has come down through the ages as synonymous with traitor.

As a former retail manager for over 45 years who was responsible for recruiting and hiring many people for positions of authority, I have to ask, “What was Jesus thinking?”  I probably wouldn’t have hired any of them!  They were losers and outcasts, poor and powerless.

One of the first thoughts that occurred to me as I reflected on this was Jesus sees us differently than we see ourselves.  We clearly see our own flaws - and more clearly everyone else's!  All of us are stricken with terror and too often, that fear rules our lives.  We let our egos get in the way and bicker about our importance and we doubt things we should believe.  We judge those on the outside – like Matthew – and yet we’re often on the outside ourselves.  We may even reject Jesus—whether intentionally or not—by our actions.

Despite these flaws, Jesus calls each one of us to spread his word, just as He commissioned the Twelve.  He calls us through our fears and loves us when we’re outcasts.  He hears our doubts with His heart instead of logic and loves us all the more.  Even Judas, as one of the Twelve, was cherished by Jesus.

So we are sent.  In all of our imperfections and in all of the ways we know we’re inadequate.  We’re sent to heal those in our world who need healing.  To forgive those who desperately need our forgiveness.  To drive out the unclean spirits of jealousy, greed and anger.

Today, in all of our real-world humanity, we’re called by Jesus to spread the good news: The Kingdom of God is here!

We mustn’t be afraid of failure in our calling, though; Jesus has our back!  As the Psalm says: “May your mercy, LORD, be upon us as we put our hope in you.” (Psalm 33:22)

Laborers for the harvest

 

During my reflection today, the image of Jesus encountering numerous people who were “troubled and abandoned” was a great reminder that each of us, if not all of us, has our own interior troubles (Matthew 9:32-38).  We can feel alone, confused, uncertain and lost at times.  The person who doesn’t feel this way is either a perfect saint or isn’t honest with themself.  Deep holiness and union with God can cure this interior struggle that many have.  In that case, the person clearly knows they belong to the family of God, understands themself as a son or daughter of God, and finds deep peace in this truth.  But for those of us who struggle, this gospel of Matthew can be especially comforting for us.

First of all, to be “troubled” could be caused by many things.  For some, they struggle with memories of the past, broken relationships, a lack of direction, serious sin, anger and the like.  So the first question to honestly ponder is whether or not we have a troubled heart.  Even the greatest of saints will find some areas they struggle with.

Secondly, feeling “abandoned” is a heavy cross.  The reason Jesus came was to enable us to belong to His family.  That’s accomplished by the gift of eternal salvation which must begin now.  By receiving the forgiveness of sins and growing in a life of prayer, we come to know God in a very intimate and personal way.  Yes, He is the Almighty God and Creator of all.  But He’s also deeply personal and intimate, and He wants to form a real relationship of love with each of us.

When we struggle with either of these, being troubled and/or abandoned, it might help to consider the zeal that Jesus has for us.  His tireless and extensive travels, by foot, while He was engaging in His public ministry, should be seen as a sign to us of His zeal to come to each one of us, personally, to become our Shepherd.  He wants to lift every burden and clear the way for us to discover our place in His family.  The “Gospel of the Kingdom” that Jesus preached was one that invited everyone to become a member of that Kingdom.  As He comes to us, His heart is filled with the same compassion as it was when He traveled the countryside so long ago.  He sees each of us, gazes at our heart with love, and never takes His eyes off of us in our need, weakness and sin.

He wants to shepherd us with every fiber of His being; we should let Jesus fulfill His mission in and through us, because as He said, “The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.”  This means He wants us to help each other through love in our times of trouble and abandonment.

Hope and healing

My Scripture reflection today was filled with fear, anxiety, grief, pain and troubles.  It was also filled with hope and healing.

Look at the problems Jacob faced (Genesis 28:10-22). He had left home, fleeing to save his life because his twin brother planned to kill him.  He didn’t know what lied ahead for him or if he would see his mother and father again.  He was on his own using a stone for a pillow.

In the Gospel, a father was distraught because his daughter had died.  The man, an official in the local synagogue, had left his grieving family to beg Jesus for a miracle (Matthew 9:18-26).

As Jesus accompanied the man to his home, He crossed paths with a woman with a long-term health issue.  Imagine the physical challenges and discomfort she felt, and then think of the emotional strain of being socially isolated by a condition that made her “unclean” in Jewish society.

In each of these stories, we find God present – in Jacob’s dream or incarnate in the Gospel.  How reassuring it must have been for Jacob to hear God say, “Know that I am with you.  I will protect you wherever you go and bring you back to this land.”  How joyful it must have been for the Jewish official to see his daughter brought back to life.  How relieved the woman must have felt to be cured and able to rejoin society.

I am encouraged by the Psalm recalling God’s promise to be with us in distress whether it is great or small (Psalm 91:1-15).  

I’m grateful for God’s mercy and compassion, which are available to each of us.  There’s more to this, though, than just me receiving God’s blessing.  Paul, writing to the Corinthians, reminds us:  “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” (2 Corinthians 1:3-4) 

The presence of God

On social media these days, we’re bombarded with requests to pass along memes and other agenda driven posts that, if we’re honest with ourselves, are filled with derision, division, misinformation, and hate.  What makes me sad about these posts is that a lot of them are being forwarded by some of my own family and friends.  I dare say that some of them at times consider my own posts to be disappointing.  It’s one of the directions my reflection took today after reading Scriptures.

Jesus’ encounter with His own kin in His own town was disappointing (Mark 6:1-6).   They were amazed at His wisdom and the mighty deeds He performed.  But despite this amazement at Him, they “took offense at Him.”  They took offense because they didn’t understand how someone whom they knew well, one of their own kin, could be someone special.  They allowed their closeness and familiarity with Jesus to cloud their ability to have faith in Him and to rejoice in His greatness.

We don’t have this same struggle in a direct way.  None of us are from Jesus’ own town or members of His extended family by blood relations.  But we can still fall into the trap of turning Jesus away as He is present in those closest to us, within our own family and among our close friends.

This struggle that Jesus encountered reveals our tendency to look at those closest to us without the eyes of faith.  Though Jesus was falsely judged, we can, at times, enter into judgment of those close to us on account of their sins or even our false perception of their good actions.  We’re called to see others in the light of truth, to look beyond the weakness and sins of others, and see the presence and grace of God alive in their lives.  To see their goodness and allow God to speak to us through those closest to us.  This can be more of a struggle than we may realize.

If it happened to Jesus, it will happen in our families too.  The lesson we should learn from this is to identify the temptation to see only the negative in the lives of those closest to us.  If we can overcome that temptation, we’ll be able to focus in on the presence of God alive in their lives.  This should be the first and primary thing we seek to discover each and every day.

My reflection today is upon how well I see God present in those closest to me.  Discovering the presence of God alive in those around us will help us to grow in love of them and love of God.

No longer strangers

Thomas doesn’t appear all that often in the gospels, but when he does, there’s plenty to reflect on.

In John’s gospel when Jesus decides to go to see Lazarus, rather than affirm the decision of Jesus Thomas doubts its wisdom and fears its outcome.  Thomas says: “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”  Again, when Jesus announces Himself as the way, the truth and the life and indicates He is going ahead and that they know the path to follow, Thomas speaks again “‘No, we don’t know, Lord,’ Thomas said. ‘We have no idea where you are going, so how can we know the way?’ (John 14:1-6)

It’s no wonder he inherits the title of ‘doubting Thomas’.  It might indicate a certain cautious disposition in life or simply indicate to us a person who struggles with issue of trust.  

One of the great contributions that St. Thomas makes for us is to expose a tendency, one that can touch us all from time to time, namely the power of doubt.  Doubt tends to be a latent capacity in the human mind; one that waits until we’re confronted with a variation of the familiar and faced with uncertainty.  Into this moment enters doubt with its capacity to throw us into confusion. Knowledge that we had, trust that we had held, even love that we bore for another can all be drowned by doubt.  These key capacities of being human are not necessarily destroyed by doubts, but doubt has a power to pull us away from the direction we had intended and lead us down a new, often confusing, pathway.

Many of us have felt we know the answer to give or the way to go, and yet doubt intervenes and disrupts our thinking process.  Thus, instead of trusting our first instinct, or our common sense, we go against these and so often find ourselves travelling in the wrong direction.

Thomas exposes this tendency as being operative too in matters of belief and alerts us to the power of doubt to sabotage one’s living faith.

But thankfully, Thomas also inadvertently reveals to us one strategy to deal with, and perhaps even overcome, doubts.

When Thomas is alone, he doesn’t have the reassuring presence of the community, and their common experience of the resurrection to guide his thinking and influence his behaviour.  Instead, he resorts to demanding ‘proof’.  Yet when he’s with the community, experiencing with them the presence of Jesus, his doubts disappear and even when it’s offered, he doesn’t need any proof that he’s in the presence of Jesus (John 20:24-29)

Thus, we each have a strong role to play to strengthen the faith of others.  By our witness within the community and by our experiences of being carried by the community we’re strengthened and in turn strengthen others.  By witnessing to the resurrection through our own love of and trust in Jesus, we can strengthen others and shore up their faith.

Perhaps this is what Paul means when he writes to those early Christians in Ephesus “You are no longer strangers and sojourners,
but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God…” and that together we the “dwelling place of God in the Spirit”. (Ephesians 2:19-22)

In such light we can illuminate the way for others and live out the prophecy of the Lord “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”

Answered prayers

Throughout my life, I’ve often asked God: “When will my prayers be answered?”  “How will my prayers be answered?”

In Scripture, we see plenty of instances of God working through people to answer prayers.

In Genesis, we find Abraham, burying his wife, Sarah.  He believes what God has promised him, that his descendants will inherit the land and be as numerous as the stars.  So, he prays for the next generation, and enlists his trusted servant to find his son Isaac a suitable wife (Genesis 23:1-19).  This leads to a series of conversations; between Abraham and his servant, between the servant and God, between the servant and Rebekah, and with her family.  In the end, Rebekah agrees to leave her family and home, and go with the servant and marry Isaac (Genesis 24:1-67).

In the Gospel of Matthew, we hear Jesus call Matthew the tax collector to be one of His apostles.  Matthew agrees and invites Jesus to his home for dinner.  Matthew and his fellow tax collectors were despised social outcasts because they collaborated with the foreign occupying power, the Romans, to extract taxes from their own people.  Yet Jesus and the other apostles eat at their table and converse with them. Everyone there heard Jesus say: “I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” (Matthew 9:9-13).  Matthew changed his life and became a leader in the early Church after Jesus died.

Some doubt God’s presence working in our world today because they don’t see overt divine interventions.  Often in the Scriptures we see God working through ordinary people who were open and willing, who entered into conversations and built relationships.  Rebekah is revered as a matriarch in Judaism and Christianity, and St. Matthew is a pillar of the Christian faith.

We may ask ourselves: Are my conversations today building up community, and promoting justice and peace?  How am I the answer to someone’s prayer?

Everything in proper order

 

“After entering a boat, Jesus made the crossing, and came into his own town.  And there, people brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Courage, child, your sins are forgiven.’” (Matthew 9:1–8)

I love this story.  These people bring Jesus a man who can't move.  In their faith, they’re sure that Jesus will know what to do.  Jesus is touched by their faith.  He tells the man to have courage and He tells him his sins are forgiven. 

One of the most important parts of this passage is that Jesus didn’t simply say “Yes” to the physical healing of the paralytic and leave it at that.  Instead, His response to the paralytic was to first forgive his sins.  I think that there’s an important lesson to be learned from this which can help us know how best to pray.

Oftentimes when we pray, we pray for this or that favor from our Lord.  We pray for what we want Jesus to grant us.  But the story of the paralytic shows us that what Jesus wants for us is different.  First, He wants to grant us forgiveness for our sins.  This is His priority, and it should also be ours.  Once the forgiveness of sins takes place with this paralytic, Jesus also heals, as proof of His power to forgive sins.  This story should help us to order our priorities in prayer according to Jesus’ priorities.  If we make sorrow for sin our first priority, we can be certain that Jesus will answer us.  From there, Jesus knows all of our needs.  We can present them to Him but only when we’re reconciled within our own heart with Him.

That’s why it’s important to make a daily examination of our sins.  This must become the first and most important part of our daily prayer.  Though many people don’t like to look at sin, it’s much easier to do when the focus is not so much the sin as it is a focus upon the mercy of forgiveness and spiritual healing we need.  The more aware we become of our daily sin, the more mercy we’ll receive.  And the more mercy for the forgiveness of our sins we receive, the more our Lord will be able to bless us abundantly in other ways.  We should always start with the mercy of our Lord and our own need for that mercy every day, and all else will be taken care of by our Lord.

Lessons both numerous and humorous

 

The Scripture readings I reflected on today are somewhat diverse.  The lessons are numerous, and some are humorous.  In Genesis, the first lesson is a reminder that God has a sense of humor.  I have a picture in my mind of God dropping the newborn Isaac in Abraham’s hundred-year-old lap and sitting back and chuckling.  At times, I’ve viewed children as both God’s gift to and joke on us.  God gives us these little bundles that will drain us emotionally, physically and financially and the moment they’re in our arms, we fall in love with them.  Like most new fathers, Abraham was probably overjoyed and overwhelmed at the same time.  The second lesson of this account is that one wife is plenty.  Already overwhelmed with a newborn, Abraham faced squabbling wives delivering ultimatums.  A great argument for a monogamous marriage.  And lastly, God always keeps His promises.  God promised Abraham that He would take care of Ishmael, Abraham trusted God and God delivered.  It’s a simple lesson that we can carry with us every day of our lives (Genesis 21:5-20). 

Psalm 34:11 states it simply: “Those who seek the Lord lack no good thing”. (Psalms 34:7-13)

We’ve all heard some stories that don’t end the way we expect them to.  Or someone reacts just the opposite of how we would expect them to react.  One of the stories in Matthew’s Gospel is like that (Matthew 8:28-34).  Christ comes upon two men possessed by demons.  He casts the demons out.  The demons go into a herd of swine and the pigs rush into the sea and drown.  Witnesses run into town and report what has happened.  The whole town comes out and when they see Jesus, they plead with him to leave.  What?!?  The Son of God showed up, performed a great miracle and they’re concerned about some pigs?  What the heck was wrong with these people? 

Saint Jerome said that it’s possible that the people were actually acting in humility, in that they didn’t consider themselves worthy to be in the presence of someone as great as Jesus.  Like Saint Peter who fell at the feet of Jesus and cried out, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord” (Luke 5:8), these townspeople may have been in such awe at what Jesus did for them that they didn’t see themselves as being worthy of His presence.  However, other Church Fathers point out that it’s more likely that these townspeople signify those who are stuck in their life of sin and don’t want to come face-to-face with the Gospel or with the Person of Jesus.  They prefer to close their ears to the truth and to remain in their life of ignorance and sin.

It might also be helpful to reflect upon the relationship between the townspeople and the two demoniacs.  Ideally, when the townspeople saw the two men completely freed of the demons who tormented them, they would have rejoiced in a way similar to the way the father of the Prodigal Son rejoiced when his son returned to him (Luke 15:11-32).  Sadly, in this case, there seemed to be a tremendous lack of excitement by their fellow townsmen over the freedom the two demoniacs experienced.  This shows a clear lack of love for the two men within the town.  Perhaps many of the townspeople took a weird form of pleasure in their mockery of these two men over the years, and they enjoyed telling stories about how crazy they were.  Now, they were faced with these two men who were completely changed, and they may have found it difficult to speak well of them because of their pride.

The negative example set by the townspeople gives us an opportunity to reflect upon how we think about and treat those who have changed their ways and have turned from evil to good.  Perhaps it’s a family member who’s sincerely tried to change.  Or perhaps someone at work, a neighbor or some other acquaintance has gone from a life of sin to a life seeking virtue.  The real question to ponder is whether we rejoice over the goodness of others, over their ongoing conversion and pursuit of holiness, or whether we struggle with truly expressing joy as we see people we know change for the good.  It’s often easy to criticize but much more difficult to rejoice in the holy transformation of another.  I would hope that I’d be more open to God’s guidance than the townspeople in the story, but I wonder. 

I remember a time when a friend asked me if I feared death.  I gave the standard “No, I’m a Christian, I believe in the resurrection” answer and then became frustrated when he questioned further.  In retrospect, I feel God opened a door for me about as wide as He could, but my own doubts and fears kept me from stepping through.  My hope is that I didn’t close the door completely on my friend and another opportunity will be presented.  My prayer today would be that I will be open to God’s guidance and that I trust in God’s promises enough to step through the doors that He opens.

From ordinary to extraordinary

 

“Oh, God!” is one movie (1977) I could see 1000 times and still be laughing.  John Denver and George Burns were marvelous together.  The movie was about God coming to earth to give the message that He gave us the world and what is in it and that it’s up to us to make it work (with His grace through faith, hope, and love).  When God (Burns) appears to assistant grocery store manager Jerry Landers (Denver) as a good-natured old man, the Almighty selects him as His messenger for the modern world.  As I imagine any ordinary man would react, Landers is overwhelmed to the edge of panic when he realizes he is, in fact meeting God and having to spread His message.  God suggests to Landers that he shave while they talk to calm himself down by doing something ordinary.  In that action, Landers is no longer afraid of God or His mission, and his courage becomes almost unshakable from that point on, as he takes on all sorts of skeptics and persecutions.  It’s one of my favorite scenes from the movie, and the one I remember most for it’s simplicity.

This movie (and this particular shaving scene) came to my thoughts as I contemplated two real-life ordinary men, one a fisherman and the other a Pharisee and a tentmaker.  Two ordinary men who recognized that God had called them to be something greater than they thought themselves to be.  Two ordinary men who had courage to speak the truth that was spoken to them through Christ.  They endured many hardships and trials for their words and actions and yet they kept on believing in the truth that dwelt in their hearts.

How could ordinary men come to do extraordinary things?

“The angel said to Peter, ‘Put on your belt and your sandals’.  He did so. Then he said to him, ‘Put on your cloak and follow me.’”  (Acts 12: 1-11) 

Even in prison Saint Peter didn’t give up hope in Jesus Christ.  He listened and followed the angel out of the prison.  The angel had to awaken him from his sleep.  If Peter was asleep he certainly wasn’t afraid of the trial that was to take place the next day.  The passion that he felt in his heart, about who he had spent three years following and all that he had seen Jesus Christ do for others, must have been a source of his hope and courage.  He was open to the possibility that Jesus was the Messiah and confirmed it when Jesus asked him “Who do you say that I am?” (Matthew 16: 13 -19).  

Saint Paul was also in prison and didn’t fear death.  He knew that he had completed what Christ had called him to do for the proclamation of the Kingdom.  He wrote, “I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith.” (2 Timothy 4: 6-18)

Paul was passionate about his faith to the point of persecuting the first Christians.  Then Jesus caught his attention with a flash of light and a bit of a humbling fall to the ground.  A “snap out of it” moment.  He would carry the message of Christ to the Gentiles beyond Jerusalem to the end of the world, at that time the Roman world.  Again, his passion came from the truth that dwelt in his heart and he wasn’t afraid to recognize it and act upon it.

Just like Jerry Landers, Saint Peter, and Saint Paul, each of us are called to become something greater than what we think we are.  This can only occur through faith, prayer, hope, discernment, and trust in Christ.