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Deacon Greg’s Homily 9-8-19

There a some key and challenging themes in our readings today for us to consider...
  • Do we truly TRUST God and the plan that is set before us? 
  • Are we OPEN to the Holy Spirit, or it just a part of the Trinity, and a nice concept that comforts our intellect? 
  • How are we at BEARING OUR CROSSES? I’ll go ahead and speak to this one: We do a lot of denying or negotiating for something as minimal as possible! 
  • Do we practice the faith so as to become more USEFUL, or are we just part of the club? 
  • What are our PRIORITIES, and what should they be? Who or what is really first in our minds? 
  • Lastly, and something that we’ve been reflecting on a lot recently: What does it means to be a DISCIPLE? 
Wisdom ask that age old question: Who can know God’s plan? How many times have you heard someone say, “I’m trying to cone to and understanding of what God’s plan is for me.” Or, “I’m praying that God reveals his plan.” Or, “I believe that God’s plan us calling me to...” In a way, our First Reading takes the pressure off as it proposes that we can never truly know or understand what the Lord conceives or intends. So instead of pretending to know God’s next move, the author would rather us to seek and dwell upon the splendor that is God’s wisdom, AND SIMPLY TRUST IN IT!

This invitation to trust is followed by the opportunity that we might open ourselves up to God’s wisdom by receiving His holy spirit “from on high,” so that we might put it to good use in making our own plans to serve the Gospel and those around us! In doing so, says the Book of Wisdom, the crooked and confusing paths of this world become straight, leading us towards a truer comfort in accepting what God wanted all along!

You could say that my medical journey this Summer provides an example here as I’ve not gotten many answers to all of the “Why” questions, but with the Holy Spirit, there may be guidance that can help me prepare for what lies ahead. I came across an article this week called “This Too Shall Pass.” In it, the author contends that it is very possible that this too shall NOT pass! That is, our personal struggles, or crosses to bear might be here to stay, calling on us to embrace a new normal, or way of living.

Today’s second reading opens with the stark reality that we all have our crosses to bear, as Paul is still a prisoner for Christ Jesus… Let me fill you in on something. He would go on to live out the rest of days in that prison, and ultimately be executed! The article points to another Letter from Paul, his Second Letter to the Corinthians, noting that “this momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.” One conclusion from the article is that since we can’t avoid some suffering in life, those moments need to become necessary and very useful!

Paul tells us of Onesimus, which translates to mean “useful.” Paul claims Onesimus as his child, who was once a slave, and maybe gifted to Paul, who granted his freedom to become a messenger of sorts. In a way, in spite of Paul’s “momentary light affliction” as a prisoner, the Spirit brings him Onesimus, and he is inspired to prepare him and send him back into the fold

Finally, Jesus in today’s Gospel doesn’t mix words... To be a Disciple, you must be all in... God must remain first priority. Meanwhile, as we live our lives, bearing our own burdens, we must remain open to the power of the Holy Spirit, as it seeks to give us the wisdom we need to make the good decisions necessary to help make use of it all to share the Gospel.

Today we are being prepared by this table, to be sent forth (from God’s own heart) into the community to freely share the Good News entrusted to us by our Father. We are no longer slaves, but brothers and sisters in the Lord. Our prayer is that the Lord’s face will shine upon us, so that we can place him first in our lives; even before our possessions and those who mean so much to us in the here and now. Our reality is that we will all have our crosses to bear, but by God’s plan, in which we are called to trust even if we cannot fathom its details, we will receive the gifts of God’s Holy Spirit, and in the end, we too can look forward to our own eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison.


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