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“Jesus told his disciples a parable on the necessity of praying always and of not becoming weary.” In a perfect world, we would always be mindful of the presence of the God who created us, who redeemed us, and who inspires us. In a perfect world, we would always recognize – and always manage to seize – the countless opportunities God presents to us to do what is right, what is good, what is creative, what is forgiving, and what is loving. In a perfect world, we would always be energetic and enthusiastic about living each day, each hour, and each moment as a gift from God. In a perfect world, nothing would ever distract us from the things in life that really matter.
Our world, of course, is anything but perfect. We, for that matter, are anything but perfect.
Sometimes, we forget the presence of God. Sometimes, we miss the chances God gives us to do what is right, good, and loving. Sometimes, we take the gift of life – and each moment of it – for granted. Sometimes we are consumed by trivial, even petty, concerns.
Simply put, there are times when we grow weary and we lose heart.
Prayer reminds us of God’s enduring presence. Prayer helps us to see the countless occasions we have each day to grow in virtue and to turn away from sin. Prayer enables us to gratefully embrace the gift of each new day as it comes. Prayer is what keeps us connected to God; prayer is what keeps us connected to the divine in ourselves; prayer is what keeps us connected to the divine in one another. Prayer is less about something we do and more about an attitude – and vision – that we develop and deepen.
Saint Francis de Sales described prayer thus:
“The essence of prayer is not to be found in always being on our knees but in keeping our wills clearly united to God’s will in all events.” (On Living Jesus, p. 295) In another place, he observed, “Prayer is the holy water that makes the plants of our good desires grow green and flourish; it cleanses our souls of their imperfections; it quenches the thirst of passion in our hearts.” (Ibid, p. 309)
Prayer gives us the humility to acknowledge where we’ve been; prayer gives us the gentleness to accept where we are; prayer gives us the courage to consider where we need to go. In the midst of our very busy, frequently demanding, sometimes frustrating and occasionally overwhelming lives, prayer helps us to stay connected with the people and things in life that really matter. When we “...give our hearts to God a thousand times a day” (Ibid, p. 298), we know how to be truly happy, healthy, and holy.Yes, prayer truly gives us the presence of mind to not grow weary...to be people of heart.
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“Take care to guard against all greed…” Greed is defined as “an excessive desire to acquire or possess more than what one needs or deserves, especially with respect to material wealth.”
What’s important to note is that greed is not equated with merely possessing material wealth, but that greed is also about having an excessive or inordinate desire to possess material wealth. It isn’t about the amount of wealth, it’s about the size – and intensity - of the desire for wealth.
Saint Francis de Sales certainly understood this distinction. In his Introduction to the Devout Life , he wrote:
“I willingly grant that you may take care to increase your wealth and resources, provided this is done not only justly but properly and charitably. However, if you are strongly attached to the goods you possess, too solicitous about them, set your heart on them, always have them in your thoughts and fear losing them with a strong, anxious fear, then, believe me, you are suffering from a kind of fever. If you find your heart very desolated and afflicted at the loss of property, believe me, you love it too much…” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 14, p. 163)
The Gospel parable is a classic example of what Francis de Sales described. The rich man isn’t condemned because he is rich. No, the rich man is condemned because he does not even consider sharing his good fortune – his rich harvest – with others. Note the distinction that Jesus makes in saying, “Guard against all greed,” because he isn’t limiting greed just to material possessions. Many of the things to which we cling – many of the things about which we have inordinate desires to keep for ourselves - aren’t material at all: our time, our opinions, our plans, our preferences, our comforts, our routines, our ways of seeing things and our ways of doing things are just a sampling of the many things to which we excessively cling.What kinds of greed – in any form, in all forms - might we need to be careful to guard against today?
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“The Lord stood by me and gave me strength...” Our first reading from Paul’s Second Letter to Timothy reminds us that being either an apostle, a disciple, or an evangelist brings its share of troubles.
Including being betrayed!
Paul cites at least three occasions on which he felt that he was – as we say so often these days – thrown under the bus. First, Demas deserted him; second, Alexander the coppersmith did him great harm; and third, no one showed up on Paul’s behalf when he attempted to defend himself in court. While he attributes his ability to get through these rough patches in his life to the Lord standing by him to give him strength, it certainly didn’t hurt that at least one person other than the Lord – Saint Luke – remained faithful to Paul throughout his ordeals.
Saint Francis de Sales wrote about the pain that comes from being betrayed by those closest to us. In his Introduction to the Devout Life , he wrote:
“To be despised, criticized or accused by evil men is a slight thing to a courageous man, but to be criticized, denounced and treated badly by good men - by our own friends and relations – is the test of virtue. Just as the pain of a bee is much more painful than that of a fly, so the wrongs we suffer from good men and the attacks they make are far harder to bear than those we suffer from others. Yet it often happens that good people – all with good intentions – because of conflicting ideas stir up great persecutions and attacks on one another.” (IDL, Part III, Chapter 3, pp. 128 – 129)
Paul found it very difficult to swallow betrayals at the hands of those with whom he lived and worked without becoming embittered about it. However, it seems that Paul was able to work through these betrayals because of the loyalty of two people in his life: the Lord and Saint Luke.Like Saint Luke, how might we help another person work through the experience of betrayal? How might we – through our willingness to practice fidelity – give them the strength to overcome their pain and discouragement?
By standing with them today!
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“My strength and my courage is the Lord: I am confident and unafraid...” Today’s Gospel reminds us that we can never be certain as to when we will need to provide an accounting to God for the lives we have lived. We’ll never know for sure when we will need to demonstrate how well we have made good use of the gifts, the talents, the blessings – and above all, the life – God has given us.
When that day, that hour, or that moment comes, will we be ready?
This consideration is sobering. The reality that each of us will die one day can be more than a bit unsettling. While Francis de Sales himself said that we should fear death, he challenged us not to be afraid of death. If we focus too much on the inevitability of our last moment on this earth, the fear – and more importantly, the anxiety - it produces could prevent us from living fully each and every present moment that will precede our last moment.
The sacrifice of these Jesuit martyrs gives radical witness to the delicate dance that comes with acknowledging the inevitability of death while not being afraid of death – of owning our immortality without allowing our immortality to prevent us – risks included - from living life to the full.
As members of the Salesian family, we are challenged to be “confident and unafraid” when it comes to facing our mortality. The same God who will judge us at the end of our lives is the same God who gives us the strength and courage to do the best we can throughout our lives. Francis de Sales offers us sound counsel in our daily attempts to live our mortal lives as best we can with confidence and without fear.
“There is no better preparation for a good death than to lead a good life.”
The Jesuit Martyrs of North America are a shining example of how there is no better way of preparing for death than by fully living each and every day to the utmost.
Today, how can we imitate their confidence and fearlessness?
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“May you be filled with the fullness of God...” Some things are worth repeating. In the context of the exhortation in Paul’s Letter to Ephesians, let us revisit some advice that Francis de sales offered to Jane de Chantal over 400 years ago:
“I entreat you to keep very close to Jesus Christ and Our Lady and to your good angel in all your business, so that the multiplicity of your many affairs may not make you anxious nor their difficulties dismay you. Do things one by one as best you can and apply your mind loyally but gently and sweetly. If God gives you good issue, we shall bless him for it; if his pleasure should be otherwise, we will bless him all the same. And it will be enough for you that you did your best in complete good faith since Our Lord and reason do not demand results in things we do, but only our faithful and whole-hearted cooperation, endeavor, and diligence; for these depend on us, whereas success does not. God will bless your good intention in undertaking this journey...” (Stopp, Selected Letters, pp. 195-196)
Insofar as we are up to our eyeballs in the details of life, it is all too easy to feel frequently that we have little or nothing to show for our efforts. In the midst of all the responsibilities and obligations that come from our vocations and avocations, it’s awfully easy to wonder if we really do make a difference in this world. At the end of any given day, it’s an all-too-common experience to ask ourselves what have we really accomplished.On days like these, recall the words of Saint Paul: “Now to him who is able to accomplish far more than we ask or imagine, by the power at work within us, to him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus to all generations…”
Today – just today – “do things one by one as best you can.” As for the results, leave them in the hands of a God who will “grant you in accord with the riches of His glory to be strengthened with power through His Spirit.”
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“Live in a manner worthy of the call you have received...” What call have we received? We are sons and daughters of God; we are brothers and sisters of Jesus; we are temples of God’s Holy Spirit.
How do we live in a manner worthy of this call? Saint Paul is clear and unambiguous: “Live with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”
In today’s Responsorial Psalm, we prayed the words “Lord, this is the people that longs to see your face.” How do we know if we are making progress in our efforts to “live in a manner worthy of the call” we have received?
The answer is - to look to see if other people see in our thoughts, our affections, our attitudes, and our actions something of the face of God.
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“Grace was given to each of us according to the measure of God’s gift...” In his Treatise on the Love of God , Francis de Sales wrote:
“God acts in our works, and we co-operate in God’s action. God leaves for our part all the merit and profit of our services and good works; we leave God all the honor and praise thereof, acknowledging that the growth, the progress, and the end of all the good we do depend on God’s mercy, finishing what God began. O God, how merciful is God’s goodness to us in thus distributing His bounty!”
God has great expectations for us: “Life on high with Jesus Christ.” God – through His mercy, that is, through His generosity – also gives us the grace we need to strive to meet those expectations. How can we possibly show our appreciation for the “grace that was given to each of us according to the measure of God’s gift?” Perhaps Saint Francis de Sales said it best.“The measure of love is to love without measure.”
God’s love in our regard is certainly without measure. To what degree can the same be said of our love for one another?Today!
