Reflection: Luke 9:51-62

The 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Luke 9:51-62 

The opening words of this Gospel are: “Not long before it was time for Jesus was to be taken up into heaven, He decided to go to Jerusalem.”  Jesus sent His messengers on ahead of Him to Jerusalem so that they could prepare for his arrival.

As Jesus traveled up to Jerusalem, there were people who refused to welcome Him.  When James and John saw this happening, they were extremely angry.  They turned to Jesus and asked: “Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven and annihilate these people?”  Jesus turned and sternly looked at them.  Then He corrected them for what they had said.  

As they approached Jerusalem, a man came Jesus and said to Him: “I will go with you wherever you go.”  Jesus replied to him, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests.  However, the Son of Man has no place to call His own.” Jesus then invited the man to follow Him.  However, the man looked at Jesus in dismay and said: “Let me wait until I have buried my father.”  Jesus bluntly responded: “Let the dead bury the dead.”

Then another person came to Jesus and said: “I want to follow you, Lord; however I need to return home and take care of some affairs and then I will follow you.” Jesus looked at the man and said: “Anyone who begins to plow and keeps looking back is not worthy of the Kingdom of Heaven.” 

While this collection of stories may just seem to be strung together as a sequence of events that occurred as Jesus made his way toward Jerusalem, there is a common theme.  In these stories, Luke instructs us about how to receive Jesus and his call, even if we find the call inconvenient or untimely.

We are not to be like those who ridicule Jesus for behaving a certain way, and we are to follow Jesus’ call without reservation.  It is easy for us to say, “Sure, Jesus, I will do this for you after I do what I want to do.”  Jesus does not want a halfhearted response from us when he calls.  He wants all of us, our entire selves, and he wants us to respond to his call with a wholehearted “yes.”

To what is Jesus calling you today?  Spend some quiet time reflecting on this question.  What is stirring within your heart?  How will you respond to Jesus’ call for you?

Reflection: Matthew 8:5-17

Saturday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time – Matthew 8:5-17

Today, as Jesus was approaching Capernaum, a centurion soldier approached him.  Clearly, he was distraught.  The soldier told Jesus that one of his servants was paralyzed and he was suffering terribly.  As soon as Jesus heard this news, he told the centurion to take him to his home so he could cure the man.

The centurion did not agree to this because he believed that he was not worthy to have Jesus come to his home.  The man told Jesus that he understood authority and how it worked.  The centurion believed that Jesus did not have to come and touch his servant; he trusted that Jesus could and would heal the man without ever seeing or touching him.

Jesus was astounded at this man’s faith, trust, and belief in him. Jesus told the centurion that he had not encountered anyone who had such faith.  Jesus then instructed the centurion to return home.  At that hour, the centurion’s servant was healed.

What is the healing we desire from Jesus?  If we ask Jesus to heal us, do we trust that healing will take place in us?  The healing may not be an immediate miracle, and the healing may not take place in the manner or the time for which we hope.  However, this does not mean that Jesus is not at work in us.

Jesus is always gracing us and healing us.  Perhaps we actually need a deeper healing than we are longing for.  Jesus desires to make us whole.  Today, may we open our minds, bodies, and hearts to His healing power. Jesus will not fail us!

Reflection: Luke 1:57-66, 80

The Nativity of St. John the Baptist – Luke 1:57-66, 80

Today we celebrate the solemn feast of the Nativity of John the Baptist. Naturally, the Gospel reading is the story of John’s birth and naming.

Elizabeth had longed for a child for many years.  However, it was not to be.  Now at an older age, Elizabeth and Zechariah finally received a great gift from God: the birth of a son, John.  After John was born, the relatives of Elizabeth and Zechariah gathered to celebrate the baby’s birth.  After so many years wishing for a child, they had received the gift for which they had longed.  They were ecstatic and filled with joy!

Before going on, it may be helpful to recall that at the very beginning of Luke’s Gospel, Zechariah was in the temple.  One day an angel appeared to him.  The angel’s message for him was that his wife, Elizabeth, would bear a son even though she was far beyond child-bearing age. Zechariah had difficulty comprehending and accepting this message. After all, he also was advanced in years.   Zechariah had the gall to question the angel how this would happen.  As a result, the angel struck Zechariah mute.  The angel told him that he would be unable to speak until the child was born. And so it was!

In the time of Elizabeth and Zechariah, the custom was to circumcise a male child on the eighth day after his birth. When the family and friends gathered for this rite, they assumed that Elizabeth and Zechariah would name the child after his father.  This was the custom at that time.  However, when the family members and neighbors asked them what the name the child would be given, Elizabeth responded that he would be called John.  Everyone was astounded! Why would this child be named John? Nobody in the family had that name.

The family members then turned to Zechariah and asked him the same question.  Zechariah wrote on a tablet: “His name is John.”  Immediately Zechariah’s speech was restored.  His tongue was freed and he spoke, blessing God for the gift of their child.  Everyone was confounded by this event.  They did not know what to make of it and asked: “Who and what will this child be?” They all believed that the hand of God was upon this child!

Have you ever been confounded by something that God has done in your life?  Take a few moments and ponder that question.  Then remember a time in your life when you received a great gift from God that you never expected. What was your response to God’s gift?

Be awake today!  God, once again, may gift you with an expected present. Have an open mind and an open heart!  When you receive God’s gift, be sure to praise and thank God!

Reflection: Matthew 7:21-29

Thursday, of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time – Matthew 7:21-29

Today Jesus tells us that it is not enough to ask to enter the kingdom of heaven. We need to be women and men who truly do the will of God.  This is the single criterion on which we will be judged. 

How do we discern what God’s will is? We will not find our answer on the Internet, in a book, and maybe not even in church.  Rather, we will find the answer by listening to Jesus’ words, not just once but every single day.  We may find the answer in the Gospel reading.  It may be revealed as we spend time with an individual who needs a listening ear.  Perhaps the answer may be found in silence and stillness.

If we listen to Jesus’ words and then act on them, we are building our inner house on the solid rock of Jesus Christ.  If Jesus is at our side, we will be able to withstand any storm, flood, or disaster.  However, if Jesus is not our rock and our foundation, it is likely that our inner house will be washed away.  It will not be able to withstand a fierce storm.

Is Jesus your rock?  Is he the one you depend on every single day, even in small matters? I hope so! It is trusting Jesus in the small matters that enables us to trust Him when we are experiencing disasters in our lives.

Today, examine the foundation of your house and your life.  What and who is your foundation?  It is wise to continually strengthen our foundation.  Today (and every day) is a good day to do so.

Reflection: Matthew 7:15-20

Wednesday of the 12th Week in Ordinary Time –Matthew 7:15-20

This Gospel reading begins on a sobering note.  Jesus instructs His disciples: “Beware of false prophets, who are disguised as sheep but inwardly are wolves who come to harm you.  You can recognize that they are wolves by their motives and actions.

Jesus then uses a different image.  He tells us that no one can get grapes, figs or any fruit from a thorn bush.  A good tree is unable to produce bad fruit and a bad tree is unable to produce good fruit.  If a tree produces only bad fruit, eventually that tree will be cut down and burned.  Then Jesus says: “You can recognize the false prophets by their deeds.”

Take a moment and ask yourself:  In what areas of my life, am I basically a good tree, a tree that strives to produce good fruit?  And what are the areas in my life in which I am struggling and not producing much fruit?  Do I wish to change these patterns or am I content to continue on as I am?

I assume that we all prefer to be fruitful trees!  For the most part we are doing so.  Today ask yourself, “What is one aspect of my life that I wish to change in order to produce more fruit?”  Today, I invite you to ponder this question for 10 minutes or so.  Then choose to make one small change that has the potential to fertilize your garden.  Commit to doing this for two to three weeks.  At the end of two or three weeks, sit quietly and ask yourself: “Am I happier about who I am?  Am I more peaceful and content?”  Your response to these questions will tell you whether you are being fruitful or not.