Asking Until it Hurts

  “'Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you.' He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. Jesus said to him in reply, 'What do you want me to do for you?' The blind man replied to him, 'Master, I want to see.'" Mk 10:50

From the time we are children we learn that the measure of faith is the courage to keep trying. No matter how often we fail to live our faith fully, sin or turn away from God, the Christian learns to dust him or herself off and start walking faith's path again. Because God is always there to help us up, this terrible and terrifying challenge, though difficult, is possible. This simple lesson is important even for the experienced believer.

The blind man in today's Gospel is proof of this. Despite the fact that those around him tried to keep him quiet so as not to bother Jesus, the blind man kept shouting until Jesus responded. Refusing to be reduced to his blindness, he trusted that Jesus would help him if only he kept asking.

The lesson is clear. If we allow ourselves to lose courage or faith because we think we are beyond help or only bothering others, we will never do the right thing. Whether we are asking for ourselves or others does not matter. The demand of faith is that we keep asking God for help and trusting that God is near.

Today, be grateful for anyone who extended a hand to you when you were struggling.

What practices most help you persevere in faith?

Fig Trees

   "For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none. So cut it down. Why should it exhaust the soil?" Mk 13:7

At the time of Jesus and still today, Palestine was an arid land with little water and shallow soil. Farmers had to use their resources carefully. Because they could not afford to allow fruit bearing plants or trees that did not produce a good crop to litter the land, they became a ready example for Jesus to teach.

All of us must bear fruit. Given faith as a free gift, we need to spend it freely for the good of others. Faith is not something that merely calls us to personal holiness. It is a treasure intended to help others know God and the Good News of Jesus. Only when we live faith in a transparent way does it bear the fruit intended by God.

Today,  reach out for someone lost.

What keeps you from producing fruit for all to eat?

Humility and Patience

 "I, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love." Eph 4:1

St Paul's letter to the Ephesians reminds us that the so called feminine virtues of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience are foundational to Jesus' vision. If we are going to be in what the scripture's call "right relationship" with one another, we must put on these virtues, especially in our families and parishes. Unless parents and pastors are humble in their guidance of their children and flock, their families and congregations will inadvertently learn that power is something to be used over others rather than with them. Only when everyone in a family and parish sense their own dignity, even when receiving correction, can we avoid creating an "us" against "them" mentality which can never be good for family or parish life.

Today, practice humility. Ask for guidance.

What do you think are the most important family and community values in the bible?

Hot Faith

 "I have come to set the earth on fire." Lk 12:49

Faith is often hot, uncomfortably so. Like walking across sand at the beach in the middle of summer, we jump and hop around, trying to avoid faith's scorching demands, but there is no way around it, faith burns. Unfortunately, we too often think of the so called hot button issues in the church of North America when we speak of faith's demands: abortion, same sex marriage and divorce, but the heat of faith is much more than these controversial issues.

Faith is hot because it demands that we listen when we are ready to explode with anger at those who disagree with us. Faith burns when it requires us to love our enemies and do good to those who harm us. Faith stings when it challenges us to let go of power that dominates others economically, militarily and socially, and all of this is what Jesus is referring to in today's gospel.

The gospel does not permit easy answers, but insists that we search beyond selfishness to see the needy with God's eyes and remember that it was the poor who first listened to him because they were desperate for hope. Only when we acknowledge our own weaknesses can we look at others with compassion and understanding. It seems to me this is true even today when we try to understand the devastation from the last two hurricanes with the eyes of faith.

Today, don't run away from the fire of faith.

When have faith's demands burned you?

Giving from our Substance

  "Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.” Lk 12:48

Sometimes Jesus is too clear for our liking. When we think about the benefits of living in the United States we can be embarrassed. Most of us have homes, food, electricity, television, computers, unlimited access to the internet and disposable income to buy gifts for others and simple pleasures for ourselves. 

Too often we feel entitled to all that we have and live as if we have a right to even more. When this happens we lose sight of the Gospel and undermine its power. Giving generously to others, especially those who have little, does more for us than those who receive our gifts. Giving changes us and reminds us that all we have is of God and from God, and while it is true that some have earned every penny they have, they too must share with others in the name of Christ and for God's glory. To share from our substance is to imitate God who gives us the Christ without strings or demands.

Today, share whatever gifts God has given you no matter how simple or few.

What impedes your willingness to give to others from your substance?

We are the Body of Christ

 "You are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone." Eph 2:19-20

Feeling like a stranger can be very beneficial, especially if we are traveling in a foreign country. Only those with too much chutzpah think they belong everywhere, and Americans are notorious for this. Some American tourists, believing they own the world, hurt and anger people of other countries and cultures. Acting as if they are entitled to anything they want because they can pay for it, the embarrass themselves and their country, often without even knowing it.

Poor people almost never feel this way, but this is not to say they have no pride or sense of themselves. Rather, because their poverty makes them dependent on others, they are slow to judge, demand or condemn. The Jews of Jesus' day were like this. Knowing their country was occupied by the Romans, they walked cautiously through life, anxious not to lose the few privileges they had, and it was their humility that make it easy for Jesus to change their lives.

Today, glory in the gift of your relationship with Christ.

How has faith given you a sense of belonging?

Wisdom and Humility

"This night your life will be demanded of you." Luke 12:20 

Success in the spiritual life is not measured by traditional standards. It does matter to the seeker whether he or she has rich and consoling experiences at prayer. Neither is the recognition of others important. Aware that every gift she has is God given and to be spent to announce the Gospel in word and deed, the only thing that matters is that God's mercy is proclaimed to all.

An attitude like this is rooted and grounded in the simple truth of God's sovereignty and gracious love for all, and when we acknowledge and accept this grace, we cannot not be humble. Like a child seeing snow for the first time, we are filled with delight in the miracle of water falling from the sky and covering the ground. God is working in us, through us and around us, and we can only pause, reflect and rejoice, not in our own triumphs, but in God's graciousness.

God's goodness to us is all the more remarkable when we consider our own faults. God seems to ignore our sins, to look beyond them, to use them in ways we could never imagine. When David admitted his sin, God first punished him appropriately and then loved him even more. Humbled, David begins life again and lives the law fully. The wisdom to trust God in every circumstance and to accept whatever God wills confirms David's new found humility. We must do the same.

Today, pray for humility.

How do you counter your own pride?