I was out storm chasing four years ago, and after four days of nothing, we encountered a fierce storm. As we stood parked on a road south of Burlington, CO, Job 38 came to mind, a part of which is the first reading.
As fierce as any storm gets, God is the One who summons them, and so He is in charge, even as Jesus demonstrates when He calms the storm on the lake. And in the midst of any storm we encounter, even mental or emotional storms of life, God, in Jesus, is with us to comfort us. But we must heed Jesus's words, and demonstrate faith in Him to be present with us in the storms. We must reach out and trust Him.
This is the faith that comes because Christ, in His great love for us, rescued us from the storminess caused by sin, and made us a new creation. We live behind the fear, and venture forth with Him.
Monday, June 22, 2015
Thursday, June 18, 2015
June 14, 2015: 11th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Although we're back in Ordinary Time, we're fully reminded that "Ordinary" does not refer to this time being uneventful and unexciting.
Indeed, a farmer's daily work, as Jesus stipulates in the first parable in the Gospel reading, involves planting seeds, and then tending to them until they bear fruit. Through a slow, but sure process, the seeds become a bountiful harvest.
God indeed is at work in our world, and in us, His people, to bring about His Kingdom. We don't really know how it happens, but our faith tell us that it does. God is truly in charge of accomplishing His purposes, even so far as reversing fortunes and letting good stand in the face of evil.
While we don't control things as God does, we nonethless seek to please Him as we participate in the work of the Kingdom He does within us, whom He has chosen. And even small efforts can become something immense, like the mustard seed, just as the seed of Christ's Death and Resurrection produces something immense, and Eternal. Indeed, in light of the Paschal Mystery, we have faith to know God accomplishes His work.
Indeed, a farmer's daily work, as Jesus stipulates in the first parable in the Gospel reading, involves planting seeds, and then tending to them until they bear fruit. Through a slow, but sure process, the seeds become a bountiful harvest.
God indeed is at work in our world, and in us, His people, to bring about His Kingdom. We don't really know how it happens, but our faith tell us that it does. God is truly in charge of accomplishing His purposes, even so far as reversing fortunes and letting good stand in the face of evil.
While we don't control things as God does, we nonethless seek to please Him as we participate in the work of the Kingdom He does within us, whom He has chosen. And even small efforts can become something immense, like the mustard seed, just as the seed of Christ's Death and Resurrection produces something immense, and Eternal. Indeed, in light of the Paschal Mystery, we have faith to know God accomplishes His work.
Sunday, June 7, 2015
June 7, 2015: Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ
Jesus established God's New Covenant with us in the spirit of the Covenant Moses established at Mount Sinai.
Moses sprinkled the people with blood, and in His covenant, Christ sprinkles us with His own precious blood to cleanse us from sin. He indeed offers His very self for our deliverance from sin and redemption.
In the ancient Near East, parties entering into a covenant shared a meal. This New Covenant is now something we partake of, and we are thus transformed to be as He is, carrying His presence into the world. We walk before Him all our days, lifting up the cup in thanksgiving to Him who has saved us.
Moses sprinkled the people with blood, and in His covenant, Christ sprinkles us with His own precious blood to cleanse us from sin. He indeed offers His very self for our deliverance from sin and redemption.
In the ancient Near East, parties entering into a covenant shared a meal. This New Covenant is now something we partake of, and we are thus transformed to be as He is, carrying His presence into the world. We walk before Him all our days, lifting up the cup in thanksgiving to Him who has saved us.
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