C Cycle – 33^rd Sunday in Ordinary Time 25

Lk. 2:15-19

You will have wars and insurrections, floods and famines, great earthquakes, and disasters.  Division among people and nations, awesome signs, and signs from the sky. That is what Jesus said to the people two thousand years ago. Talk about the scriptures being the “living word.”  Sounds like the world we live in today but as Christians somehow, we expect God to slowdown those things if not eliminate them.

Remember the devastating flood that washed away twenty seven young girls attending at a Christian summer camp along the Guadalupe river.  The hurricane that recently ravaged Jamacia and the earthquakes of Myanmar, Afghanistan, China, and Russia. Severe famine in Mali and Sudan.  Talk about awesome signs, on Wednesday, the northern lights witnessed by residents of North Carolina. Next year things will not be any different unless the end of the world happens. 

One of the hardest things God requires of us is to remain steadfast in our belief in God’s goodness and that He cares about what we are going through. That is especially true if you are not impacted by a serious natural disaster or by some nation or groups desire for dominance.  It is hard to trust God is the answer as cities are destroyed by violence and ambitions of individuals seeking power and position.  But beyond all those uncontrollable events, Jesus tells us to stand firm in our faith and be witnesses of the good news of the gospel knowing we will be ridiculed, ostracized, and isolated.

We are told to be of good cheer for He has conquered the world. But when disaster strikes the world seems to have won. It is hard to believe in a merciful, loving God and seek solace when we are struggling with who He is.  Living in this world we have an inbuilt need for acceptance and belonging. Yet there is a cost to being accepted: it demands a compromise.  It forces us to have a private, personal faith instead of a bold, visible one.  That makes it even harder to maintain your faith when your child is washed away in the flooded waters of the Guadalupe river. 

 Where was God that early morning? Where is God when your child was killed in a car accident or by an unseen disease? Where is God when your spouse tells you then no longer love you and are leaving you and the children?  Where is God when your spouse is suddenly disabled and is dependent on you? It is during those moments we fail to see He is right there weeping with you and inviting you to draw from His strength.

Jesus in his gospel is telling us a hard truth about how we are to daily live our faith.  Life is not always going to be easy, and faith is the only thing that can get us through those hard moments. Faith requires a belief in God’s promises. But because much of our daily living is routine, we have no need to exercise our faith. That is why Jesus continued to challenge the disciples each time they began to get comfortable with their understanding of the mission of Jesus. 

We are too comfortable with our understanding of the mission of Jesus and with our call to discipleship.  In fact, how often do you think of what you could do daily to server God and neighbor?  How often do you seek the mind of God and seek to know what you can do to be a stronger Christian. 

We must think of ourselves as disciples with a mission each day to serve God. Discipleship is lived outside the church building and unfortunately, we have compartmentalized our faith and other aspects of our life. 

Paul, in his epistle today invites the Thessalonians to imitate him and his disciples.  That is a good thing to bring into the world beyond the church walls.  Outward manifestation of our belief in God should be seen by our spouses, our children, our friends, co-workers, and strangers.  Do those you play golf, poker, tennis, or pickle ball know your faith comes first?

God promised us His plans for us are for our profit not your demise.  He promised to give us strength for another day.  He promised to be with us always.  He promised to change our mourning into laughter. He promised to change our hearts and to make us into His image.  There are two hundred and fifty promises of God in the scriptures.  Why not make one of them your focus during Advent and invite the Holy Spirit into your life and to transform you into a confident, outgoing, visible disciple who stands on the promises of God and not allow the ups and downs of daily living overwhelm your faith.