July 8, 2018

July 8, 2018 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time B Ezekiel 2: 2-5; 2 Corinthians 12: 7-10; Mark 6: 1-6 The Word of God in my life: am I aware of God’s presence within me? When I am, does it seem to leave me with some sort of confidence? Do I feel the need to share this experience? In mulling this over, do I feel inadequate and not know what to say? Do I feel somewhat tongue-tied, not knowing how to explain it? Do I wonder that this might be my imagination setting in and I haven’t really experienced God? When I see all my weaknesses do I turn to God or just fade off into my quiet self? Do my character defects and weaknesses persuade me that I’m just not a good choice for being God’s instrument? Could I ever imagine myself being one of God’s prophets to the people in my life? Do I ever imagine that I am part of God’s plan? That He has created me, gifted me, placed me in this place at this time so that others may see God in me? Can I place myself in this scene? Do I envision myself as being God’s prophet in my world? Can I see myself as very important to God for delivering His message of peace, love and caring? Do I see myself as that important to God? I have no doubt that everyone reading the above would say NO WAY! Not me? I’m just an unimportant, regular person with maybe a few gifts but not any gifts THIS BIG! ‘Go to the priests, the nuns, the bishops, pope…let them help you. Me, well, I’ll pray for you…and you don’t need to come back to me…I will be vanishing. I’m no hero, I’d be no help to you.’ The apostles did the same: in the Garden when the ‘death squad’ came for Jesus, they ran. When Jesus was crucified, they hid; their lives were in total jeopardy. When the Spirit descended on them at Pentecost, what did they do? They let go of their fear and began serving the ‘lost searching people who felt they had been found by God in Jesus. Very few of us feel that we have been called by God to ‘Be His disciples.’ We feel, ‘Well maybe in a few situations, I might be able to help…but I’m not good enough to be of much help…leave this to the priests and nuns.’ This is how we feel…this does not come from God. God has called each person to BE HIS disciples, each day every day. As Gary Jensen says in The 15-Minute Prayer Solution: “We too are called to serve to not be afraid. With the Holy Spirit already dwelling in us there is no time to waste. We need to take action now and assist those around us, whether it’s a family member, a friend, a coworker, a stranger on the street, our environment, our nation, or our world.” If they don’t see Jesus in you and me, where will they find Him? Is this hopeless? NO!…God is doing the calling! The first reading is from Ezekiel. He became the first prophet to receive this call outside the Holy Land. He was one of the exiles deported by Nebuchadnezzar and the task that God gave him was to prepare his fellow countrymen for the final destruction of Jerusalem which they believed would absolutely never happen. God wouldn’t allow it. They had hoped that Egypt’s help would stop this…it didn’t. In spite of all that God had done for them out of love, they turned their attention to things other than God. God sends Ezekiel to preach the truth and see the only source of security is devotion to God. Spiritually speaking, they lie lifeless on the ground the end result of years of idolatry. They will one day realize that what this prophet said was absolutely true because it came from God. In the next verse after today’s reading (v 6) God tells Ezekiel not to be afraid even though he will sit among briers thorns and scorpions. Regardless of what happens we must speak God’s words. Paul shares his own personal struggles especially with his own health. Scholars say that he may have had problems with his eyes; we see this in Galatians 4; 13-15. The Lord reveals to Paul today that “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” How very true this is as we have experienced in our own lives that only in our weakness is God’s true strength visible. It is not about me…it is all about God: His love, mercy, forgiveness and care. Paul also shares that all the sufferings and hardships he endures are an occasion for him to share in the suffering of Christ which brought salvation to the world, to you, to me. When we read the gospel we can see an important theme that runs throughout Mark, of Jesus being rejected by the very people who should accept and support Him. His family thinks He’s crazy, His hometown neighbors think he is a fraud, his disciples flee from Him. And Jesus continues on to the end. Today Jesus returns to His hometown. The people want to know where Jesus got all this knowledge? They know Him, they know His family. Because of their lack of faith, Jesus could not perform any mighty deeds there. Obviously Jesus took them by surprise. They are skeptical and act as if Jesus is a fraud. ‘He isn’t special, He’s just like one of us.’ The painful truth in all this has happened to us when we meet opposition in evangelizing our family and friends. ‘Who are you to get up on your high horse and preach to us?’ Each of us have also been complacent when a familiar priest of many years speaks to us and wants us to ‘move more to Christ’. To be a messenger of God’s love is seldom welcomed the way we hoped it would. Reflecting on the Word from Living the Word shares: “Jesus’ warning that ‘ A prophet is not without honor except in His native place and among His own kin and in His own house,’ shows keen insight into our human tendency to resist listening to or learning from people we think know well. The townsfolk thought they knew Jesus because they knew His family. They judge by appearance and do not look deeper to discover who Jesus really is. Their resistance reveals a lack of faith both in Jesus and in themselves. I know that when I resist looking at my life with fresh eyes, that resistance is the result of my unwillingness to change my way of being because I’ve grown comfortable, I do not believe that I can make the change, nor do I believe that I’m worth it. That narrow vision keeps me foreseeing myself in the eyes of the One who looks into the heart and sees a child of God, worthy of so much more, made worthy by Jesus becoming one with us to help us become one with God. When I shift my vision and fix my eyes on the Lord, I can see my weaknesses as gifts because they remind me to turn to God for wisdom, help and guidance. They become a source of gentle strength. Then I can say with St. Paul, ‘When I am weak, then I am strong.’ True strength comes from finding the power of Christ’s mercy and love deep within me. God sees our hearts, loves us as we are, and invites us to become more. In my native heart place I can find honor, hope, and healing. In my heart space God helps me to accept what I cannot change, gives me courage to change what I can and wisdom to know the difference.” So I reflect on: • When have I resisted someone else because I thought I knew then? • How has a weakness become a source of my healing and strength? • How difficult has it been for me to accept my role as a prophet of Jesus? Do I realize that God is calling me to speak out? Sacred Space 2018 shares: “People who know us see us in specific contexts: as the youngsters they knew at school, as daughters or sons in a neighborhood family. They have catalogued information about us and put us automatically in categories. Jesus was not immune to this sort of day-by-day assessment and categorization. And, in the same way such thinking limited what Jesus could do in His hometown, others’ perceptions of us can threaten to mute the gifts God has placed within us. Lord, I am willing to go outward with my life and gifts, to go where they can be nurtured and received. Give me the strength to leave what is familiar for the sake of Your kingdom coming alive in me.