Amen!
The Lord will restore the vine of Jacob, the pride of Israel.
It seems like that all this week that my wife, Anna, and I have been going to doctors. These doctors can perform procedures, prescribe medications and give advice to restore and improve our bodies. Nonetheless, they are not gods and wouldn’t claim to be. The medical community can perform wonders but they are not God. In our Psalm from Deuteronomy it says in part, I who inflict wounds and heal them.
Humans can’t control everything and I am glad because the track record for such efforts is abysmal.
In our Gospel, today, Jesus gave advice to those who know they are not gods. He said, Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. Jesus knew that this would not be easy, because he continued to say, For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my ske will find it.
The question this Gospel poses is that we have to do our part by carrying our own crosses to follow Jesus. We have a proactive part in God’s plan.
This week I went to my Podiatrist at the Veterans Administration. I use private doctors for most medical issues but the VA is very efficient with some ailments. As I was walking into the building for my appointment at 8AM there was a frail older man getting out of an Uber car. I asked him if he needed help into the building. He said he did. I figured it would be a 10 yard good deed. I thought to myself, the Kingdom of God is at hand. Well we checked in with reception and as it turned out there was no one to escort the little man to where he needed to go. He could walk but was unsteady and did not want a wheelchair. They had a number of people called in sick. Many times I have been in a situation where the only help available was my two hands. I had plenty of extra time and as it turned out we checked into the same office pod. Well it did not end there. My veteran had to go to another area all together. So I took him to the next desk. There was no reason to let he wander off alone and he needed a helping hand. The new pod was where he needed to be. We said our good-byes and that was it.
In reflection, God put me and my fellow veteran where we needed to be. I was an hour early. God put me in the correct place for me to accept a cross. I helped the veteran get to his appointment. I was still 45 min. early, soI made an Eye appointment for December. I ended up getting out early, which turn out well. I could see God’s hand working in the whole situation. I was able to get to work early and it was a blessing for my boss because someone at my parttime job had called in sick. He needed someone to help and I punched onto my shift early. All the circumstances seemed to work out for me, my veteran and my boss. Because we all carried our crosses, God was glorified. We carried our crosses and God performed a scheduling miracle.
For the Son of Man will come with his angels in his Father’s Glory, and then he will repay each according to his conduct. I don’t do everything to glorify God. This same week, I slipped on a wet floor at a local convenience store. I cursed. I was dazzed. Sorry God! Many people came to help me up. The only thing hurt was my pride. Thank God ! It would be unfair to seek reparation even thought I was not hurt. I will not file a lawsuit, even though I could and it would be taking undo advantage. However, I am now a “fall risk” when I go see one of those doctors that I spoke of earlier. Oh, brother! Life is complicated! My conduct shouldn’t be.
We are all a mixture of good and bad actions. 1Samuel 16:7 But the Lord said to Samuel: Do not judge from his appearance or from his lofty stature, because of I have rejected him. The Lord looks into the heart. We cannot pull the wool over God’s eyes. He knows what we think and do. He looks into our hearts and knows our conduct.
Pslam 116:9 I shall walk before the LORD in the land of the living. If we walk with Jesus we don’t have to hide from Him. He is there. This is how we should all live our lives with Jesus at our side. We will never walk alone.
God Love You Always
Bob Burford
PS: Please continue to pray for peace in the Ukraine. Also pray for Cancer victims and their caregivers.
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