3 September 2017 - dupelication

Today's Readings

I say to myself, I will not mention him,
I will speak in his name no more.
But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart,
imprisoned in my bones;
I grow weary holding it in, I cannot endure it.

Jeremiah doesn't want to carry the cross that is given him. And really, who does? By definition the cross is sorrow, pain, and suffering. For Jeremiah it is "derision and reproach all the day". But there is something inside him that won't let him give up. It is something which is inside of us as well. The word of God is planted in him. The desire for God draws him onward and upward even when the pain seems too great to bear.

O God, you are my God whom I seek;
for you my flesh pines and my soul thirsts
like the earth, parched, lifeless and without water.

We thirst because we do not have in fullness. We have tasted and seen but we long for still more. We know only this water can satisfy.

Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself,
take up his cross, and follow me. 
For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

We need to come to see this cross as God sees it. The cross is worth it. On the far side of the cross is resurrection and life and the water of life for which we thirst. We feel duped into taking it up like Jeremiah, but ultimately we are glad for it. And our desire for that gladness can help us to pursue it with all that we are. It can transform something which we are forced to do into intentional worship of God.

I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God,
to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice,
holy and pleasing to God, your spiritual worship. 

Here is where desire meets fulfillment. Let us offer our whole selves in exchange for it. With minds renewed we see that we are not duped. We carry our crosses in a way that is good and pleasing and perfect. We are no longer tricked or overwhelmed. We are worshiping God by the power of his Spirit in us. In return we receive the promised reward.

For the Son of Man will come with his angels in his Father's glory,
and then he will repay all according to his conduct.

2 Sept 2017 - all the small things

Today's Readings

His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant.
Since you were faithful in small matters,
I will give you great responsibilities.

It's OK to start small. Even if we only invest two talents, or just one, we can still make a return on the master's investment that will satisfy him. In fact, as long as we do more than nothing we are on the path to sharing our master's joy. These talents we are given have the power to increase, but only when we invest them, when we put them to work. There is always the feeling of risk involved. We worru that we will end up losing the gifts we are given. Let us not be fearful about using these gifts. As long as we're investing in the Kingdom we will have something to show for it.

The context of smallness and simplicity is why Paul's instructions to the Thessolonians make sense.

Nevertheless we urge you, brothers and sisters, to progress even more,
and to aspire to live a tranquil life,
to mind your own affairs,
and to work with your own hands,
as we instructed you.

We may worry that the LORD is looking for something massive or impressive or flashy as a return on his investment. But that is thinking as men do, not as the LORD does. He is rather looking for faithfulness from us as we  put the talents he gives us to work. He is just as happy to see them used in a tranquil life of hard work and minding our own business as he is seeing them put to work in any other calling we may have.

The closer one approaches to God, the simpler one becomes.- Saint Teresa of Avila

Simplicity, quiet, and hard work are not escape from the call to spread the Kingdom. They are one of the main ways in which the Kingdom is spread, provided they are done with the talents we are given. If we are called to other callings beyond just these they may still be our starting place. The master may give us more of his wealth once he sees that we use what his initial gift well.

Let the rivers clap their hands,
the mountains shout with them for joy.
Before the LORD, for he comes,
for he comes to rule the earth;
He will rule the world with justice
and the peoples with equity.

1 Sept 2017 - full tank

Today's Readings

This is the will of God, your holiness

This might sound intimidating but it should really simplify things for us. When it comes right down to it the call of God on our lives is not very complicated. It is about holiness. It is about conducting ourselves to please God more and more each day.

The foolish ones, when taking their lamps,
brought no oil with them,
but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps. 

We are called to meet the bridegroom with lamps alight. The oil of grace is given to us. We need to remember to bring this oil with us. We need to always be ready to shine the light we are given to reveal the presence of the bridegroom. We are called to holiness, which again, is not complicated. But without grace given to us we can't fuel that calling. The fuel is sufficient to keep the lamps burning but we actually have to bring it and use it. We can't allow ourselves to become so distracted that we leave it behind. Yet it is still about more than our weakness. Grace changes even what happens when we reach our own limitations. With grace, when we become drowsy and fall asleep we can still wake up to shine our lights right away. Without grace our human limitations prevent us from going out to meet the bridegroom.

While there is still time let us seek the holiness without which no one will see God (see Hebrews 12:14). This holiness is the Spirit burning within us. His fire comes from grace freely given. It is enough to bring us safely to the presence of the king no matter our own human frailty.

Light dawns for the just;
and gladness, for the upright of heart.
Be glad in the LORD, you just,
and give thanks to his holy name

31 August 2017 - while you were awway

Today's Readings

Jesus, help our hearts to be like your heart. Show us how to distribute the gifts you give to us at the proper time.

Who, then, is the faithful and prudent servant,
whom the master has put in charge of his household
to distribute to them their food at the proper time?
Blessed is that servant whom his master on his arrival finds doing so.
Amen, I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his property.

Help make us good stewards of your gifts regardless of whether you seem distant or delayed. Often, when we feel distant from you, or like we've waited for you as long as we can we, begin to think more about ourselves and less about others. The project of spreading your love seems to overwhelming so we revert to building comfortable lives for ourselves. It is an overwhelming project alone. But you give us the gifts and graces we need to carry it out. And you are never far from us even if it sometimes feels like you are. Once again it comes down to motivation. Do we only act because we feel like we're being watched and must perform? That motivation won't last in times of desolation when we feel your absence. Instead we need to let love of you motivate us. We need to let you help us to love what you love so that can drive us on even in times when the feelings of consolation are less abundant.

This is how we "stand firm in the Lord". We ask and allow our hearts to be strengthened so that we can be blameless in holiness before our God and Father even until the coming of our Lord Jesus. This is the endurance to the end that can save us. It stems from being transformed by our faith. It is living in hope and in love by the gifts of the Holy Spirit. It is never turning back from the calling of God no matter what feelings tell us. This endurance is a gift you offer us today, Jesus. Let us receive it.

Fill us at daybreak with your kindness,
that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days.
And may the gracious care of the LORD our God be ours;
prosper the work of our hands for us!
Prosper the work of our hands!

30 August 2017 - word powered

Today's Readings

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites.

What motivates us? Are we trying to look good or to actually be good? We all have a little Pharisee in us, concerned with appearing religious in the eyes of others. The question is what is going on in our hearts. Do we celebrate the teachings of the Church while failing to practice it? Of course we do, to one degree or another.

Thus you bear witness against yourselves
that you are the children of those who murdered the prophets

It is just way too easy to become satisfied with the outward show. We probably start off with better motivation but then become accustomed to the reward of how we are seen by other people. This motive comes to dominate until eventually we aren't particularly interested in the good acts themselves as long as we appear good before the world. This is why Jesus suggests that we often do our works secretly. He suggests we give and pray in secret so that we can cut ourselves off from dependence on this motivation. God is sufficient. He by himself can be sufficient to motivate us when we are willing to rely on him alone.

The genuine work of the Kingdom isn't always glamorous. It is sometimes the "toil and drudgery" of which Paul speaks. It is working "night in day" in order to not be a burden. It is constant effort at devout, just, and blameless behavior in all our relationships. We need to receive the word of God, not as the word of men, but as the word of God that it really is. Then it has the power to make us overcome all this hypocrisy. Otherwise, if we treat it like any other word, we throw it out when it is inconvenient. We do not pursue it when the reward is not immediate. But if it is the word of God we surrender to it and thereby unleash its power in our lives. The LORD knows who we are. He knows about our mixed motives. This is exactly why he stands always ready to shine his light upon us and to cast the darkness from us.

If I say, "Surely the darkness shall hide me,
and night shall be my light"–
For you darkness itself is not dark,
and night shines as the day.

29 August 2017 - properly motivated

Today's Readings

Herod feared John, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man,
and kept him in custody.
When he heard him speak he was very much perplexed,
yet he liked to listen to him.

Why is it that John can say things like "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife" and yet Herod still wants to listen to him. It is because of his integrity. His motives are not selfish. Herod can sense this. John the Baptist isn't seeking his own interests. If he were his strategy for getting out of prison would be quite different. Paul is credible to his congregation for the same reason.

Our exhortation was not from delusion or impure motives,
nor did it work through deception.

People can see through delusions, impure motives, deception, and especially greed. They can tell when someone is just looking to be praised, trying only to say the right things that he thinks the crowd wants to hear.

How do we avoid this pitfall? We are not without flaws. To some extent we all suffer from the depravity that makes our message less credible and more potentially self-serving. How we proclaim the truth of God. This is something we can learn from John the Baptist. 

He must increase, but I must decrease (see John 3:30)

When this is the motivation of our proclamation people can see it. It may perplex them. It may even infuriate them to some degree. But they will ultimately desire to hear it.

But as we were judged worthy by God to be entrusted with the Gospel,
that is how we speak,
not as trying to please men,
but rather God, who judges our hearts.

This sort of proclamation is the most likely to work. But when we use this approach we are the most likely to be strongly opposed because we are by definition unwilling to conceal any of the truth with those to whom the proclamation goes. Yet it is precisely in the logical conclusion of this opposition, martyrdom, that faith makes its strongest case. The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church, as Tertullian says. John the Baptist is the first one privileged to lay down his life for the Lamb of God he proclaims. Ever since then saints in every age have joined this irrefutable testimony. We may not be called to martyrdom. But let us at least speak fearlessly, desiring only that Jesus may increase. We need not fear for he is with us.

O LORD, you have probed me and you know me;
you know when I sit and when I stand;
you understand my thoughts from afar.
My journeys and my rest you scrutinize,
with all my ways you are familiar.

28 August 2017 - were they not in you

Today's Readings

Are we blind guides? We are if speak mostly of rules and not enough of relationship. If we are telling people about their obligations to temple, to gold, and to altar, without telling them how to know the one who dwells in that temple and is worshipped on that altar and with that gold. The temple, gold, and altar have immense value when at the service of relationship. But this gospel proves that we can use any legitimate good to distance ourselves from God and excuse ourselves of our obligations toward him.

This is a sign that we have two much of the letter of the law. We need to receive more of the conviction of the Spirit.

For our Gospel did not come to you in word alone,
but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with much conviction.

The conviction and power of the Holy Spirit keep the message safe from becoming a mere vanity project for us. It gives us a faith which works in labors of love. It gives us a hope that bestows endurance on us when we would otherwise be tempted to turn aside. 

We are going to worship something. It will either be God or the inconspicuous idols of modernity such as comfort and entertainment. Let us turn entirely from those idols. Rules are not enough to save us when we think about why we should change the way we actually spend our time day to day. Once we get into that sort of nitty-gritty we are at the peak of our readiness for talking ourselves out of and excusing ourselves from our obligations of faith, hope and love. If idols are first at such times we fragment. We can serve entertainment with part of our heart and God with the other, we think. But it is always false. We must serve God alone. We only find the blessings of legitimate lesser good's when they are given to us from his hand.

For the LORD loves his people,
and he adorns the lowly with victory.

This is the secret that Saint Augustine writes of when he says:

Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved you! You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you. In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created. You were with me, but I was not with you. Created things kept me from you; yet if they had not been in you they would not have been at all. You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness. You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness. You breathed your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for you. I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more. You touched me, and I burned for your peace.