Walking with Jesus: 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Jeremiah 20:10-13; Romans 5:12-15; Matthew 10:26-33
How does God feel about me? Maybe this reflection might go deeper if I ask, How do I feel about myself? If I’m all wrapped up in myself and not aware of others, my world could seem very lonely. I exist just for me. Others don’t care about me because I don’t really care about them. I’m just here in this world alone. It would seem that I’m just an object on the Christmas tree without any real difference from the ornaments around me … I just hang there … I can be replaced easily by another ornament. However I respond to this reflection, the bottom line is that I need to feel needed. I need to feel I’m of value. I need to know that I am good for something. I need to know that I’m cared about and loved. I need to know that I have something to do, to accomplish what is worthwhile, to be a person who has meaning, more than just paying this bill a merchant hands me or the tax the government levies on me. Who am I? Am I important to God? Does God need me? Is my life, God, important now?
Today’s readings and especially the gospel focus in on living with Jesus and as Jesus in the world I live in. Do I have the courage to do this? Does God really expect me, with the little I know, to be His helper? Is it about how much knowledge I have? Or is it about how deeply I realize God is present and how much love He has for me? Where are my doubts? Do I have a low threshold of self-importance? Do I see the workings of the Holy Spirit bringing me closer to God each day?
Just before today’s reading, Jeremiah has been complaining: He feels that God has seduced him. Why has God given him such an impossible mission to people who are non-receptive and even violent? He has had to endure verbal and physical attacks and even being thrown into prison. The people he once counted as friends have not only deserted him but turned against him. On top of it all, Jeremiah belongs to a priestly family: Doesn’t that count at all? When we conjure up our past experiences, we know what being avoided and shunned is all about. We have felt very alone in a lonely, cruel world. What did we do? Upon whom did we rely? Despite the dangers and even the treachery of friends, Jeremiah trusts that God is with him, defending and loving him: “But the Lord is with me, like a mighty champion.” [Jeremiah 20: 11] He knows he is doing God’s work. He knows God is with him. He waits patiently to see how God will make His presence known. He knows that God’s plan, however ignored, will be revealed in time. Julian of Norwich, a saintly mystic, said that the two worst sins are impatience and despair; how often Satan fills us with these tendencies. He gives us the feeling that God isn’t helping and that He really doesn’t care. Distraction and confusion are a constant temptation in Satan’s arsenal. Do I realize this When it happens, do I call on the Lord for help?
Paul illustrates this by comparing the sin of disobedience in Adam and Eve, a sin which has had a lasting stronghold over all generations through Jesus’ death. Their one-time sin was really a devastating all-time sin for all peoples. What has led us away from God? The refusal to love and be people of love … I’m not going to love that person … look what they did to me … I’m really going to get even … I can hate and hurt to my heart’s content. This death to sin reigned over all. The obedience of Jesus ends this reign by establishing and proving God’s eternal love.
Jesus is preparing to send out the Apostles on their first missionary journey, and today’s reading is part of that instruction. [Matthew chapter 10] The requirements for being a disciple, then and now, are not easy. It is not for the timid, but Jesus is always present. Do I talk with Jesus as I walk through my daily problems or excitements? This is what prayer is: God is always present. How do I know this? Look at the words of hope He gives us today: “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. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” [Matthew 10:29-30] Satan distracts us from our mission to care, forgive, and love each person. Too often we let our fears slowly kill our hope, our enthusiasm, our spirit. Today Jesus tells us not to be afraid because God loves us unreservedly. Go to the Lord.
Trappist monk Fr. Thomas Merton wrote, “Courage comes and goes. Hold on for the next supply.” St. Benedict wrote a whole book giving instructions to monks for living an authentic Christian life, but its guidelines are widely applicable. In its prologue he writes, “We hope to impose nothing harsh or burdensome. However that still requires courage.”
So I reflect on:
“Jesus reminds me that I do not have to have all the answers or convince everyone of the truth. In God’s time, not mine, all will be made clear.
“But Jesus mentions fear five times here. Does fear sometimes make me betray the truth? Perhaps I may know what to do in a situation, but I do nothing for fear of the reaction of others. I ask to believe that God knows me fully and values me limitlessly, so I need not fear.”
How does God feel about me? Maybe this reflection might go deeper if I ask, How do I feel about myself? If I’m all wrapped up in myself and not aware of others, my world could seem very lonely. I exist just for me. Others don’t care about me because I don’t really care about them. I’m just here in this world alone. It would seem that I’m just an object on the Christmas tree without any real difference from the ornaments around me … I just hang there … I can be replaced easily by another ornament. However I respond to this reflection, the bottom line is that I need to feel needed. I need to feel I’m of value. I need to know that I am good for something. I need to know that I’m cared about and loved. I need to know that I have something to do, to accomplish what is worthwhile, to be a person who has meaning, more than just paying this bill a merchant hands me or the tax the government levies on me. Who am I? Am I important to God? Does God need me? Is my life, God, important now?
Today’s readings and especially the gospel focus in on living with Jesus and as Jesus in the world I live in. Do I have the courage to do this? Does God really expect me, with the little I know, to be His helper? Is it about how much knowledge I have? Or is it about how deeply I realize God is present and how much love He has for me? Where are my doubts? Do I have a low threshold of self-importance? Do I see the workings of the Holy Spirit bringing me closer to God each day?
Just before today’s reading, Jeremiah has been complaining: He feels that God has seduced him. Why has God given him such an impossible mission to people who are non-receptive and even violent? He has had to endure verbal and physical attacks and even being thrown into prison. The people he once counted as friends have not only deserted him but turned against him. On top of it all, Jeremiah belongs to a priestly family: Doesn’t that count at all? When we conjure up our past experiences, we know what being avoided and shunned is all about. We have felt very alone in a lonely, cruel world. What did we do? Upon whom did we rely? Despite the dangers and even the treachery of friends, Jeremiah trusts that God is with him, defending and loving him: “But the Lord is with me, like a mighty champion.” [Jeremiah 20: 11] He knows he is doing God’s work. He knows God is with him. He waits patiently to see how God will make His presence known. He knows that God’s plan, however ignored, will be revealed in time. Julian of Norwich, a saintly mystic, said that the two worst sins are impatience and despair; how often Satan fills us with these tendencies. He gives us the feeling that God isn’t helping and that He really doesn’t care. Distraction and confusion are a constant temptation in Satan’s arsenal. Do I realize this When it happens, do I call on the Lord for help?
Paul illustrates this by comparing the sin of disobedience in Adam and Eve, a sin which has had a lasting stronghold over all generations through Jesus’ death. Their one-time sin was really a devastating all-time sin for all peoples. What has led us away from God? The refusal to love and be people of love … I’m not going to love that person … look what they did to me … I’m really going to get even … I can hate and hurt to my heart’s content. This death to sin reigned over all. The obedience of Jesus ends this reign by establishing and proving God’s eternal love.
Jesus is preparing to send out the Apostles on their first missionary journey, and today’s reading is part of that instruction. [Matthew chapter 10] The requirements for being a disciple, then and now, are not easy. It is not for the timid, but Jesus is always present. Do I talk with Jesus as I walk through my daily problems or excitements? This is what prayer is: God is always present. How do I know this? Look at the words of hope He gives us today: “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. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” [Matthew 10:29-30] Satan distracts us from our mission to care, forgive, and love each person. Too often we let our fears slowly kill our hope, our enthusiasm, our spirit. Today Jesus tells us not to be afraid because God loves us unreservedly. Go to the Lord.
Trappist monk Fr. Thomas Merton wrote, “Courage comes and goes. Hold on for the next supply.” St. Benedict wrote a whole book giving instructions to monks for living an authentic Christian life, but its guidelines are widely applicable. In its prologue he writes, “We hope to impose nothing harsh or burdensome. However that still requires courage.”
So I reflect on:
- Where do I need the Spirit’s help today so that I can keep rising back up to do what I am called to do ... in spite of my fear or weakness?
- The saints and prophets were brutally honest in their relationship with God. Am I willing to yell at God to pour my heart to Him? Why not? He loves me just the way I am.
- “Who we are is God’s gift to us. What we do with our lives is our gift to God.”
“Jesus reminds me that I do not have to have all the answers or convince everyone of the truth. In God’s time, not mine, all will be made clear.
“But Jesus mentions fear five times here. Does fear sometimes make me betray the truth? Perhaps I may know what to do in a situation, but I do nothing for fear of the reaction of others. I ask to believe that God knows me fully and values me limitlessly, so I need not fear.”
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