I remember sitting in an auditorium at a conference years ago waiting for the speaker. A stranger next to me asked, “Are you all right?” I guess there was a look of surprise on my face that she would ask me that question, because the stranger then said, “Since we’ve been sitting here, you have sighed deeply several times. That usually means something is wrong.”
It was true that there were things going wrong in my life, and I was deeply discouraged. I hadn’t realized that I had been sighing, but sighs are a natural way that our bodies respond when we are discouraged, disappointed, or sad. It is like we let the air out of our lungs with extra intensity—perhaps to let go of the stress of our thoughts, perhaps to empty our lungs, so we will breathe in more deeply. Breathing deeply and slowly, as we do when we sigh, is part of the way God created us to manage stress in our lives. Deep breathing diminishes the chemistry of stress and triggers body chemistry of relaxation.
Jesus Sighs
In today’s Gospel, Jesus sighs “from the depth of his spirit.” The little snippet of Gospel we have today doesn’t give us the background reason for Jesus’ discouragement. We are in the 8th chapter of Mark, which means Jesus is about mid-way through his three years of active teaching and healing. Before Chapter 8 is over, actually as part of Jesus dealing with his discouragement, Jesus asks his disciples, “Who do men say that I am? Who do you say that I am?” and Peter responds, “You are the Christ.” With that proclamation, Jesus turns his attention toward Jerusalem and begins to predict his coming passion and death.
Jesus has just fed 4000 people—because people had been listening to him preach, and he saw they were hungry. But then the Pharisees came forward and “began arguing with Jesus, seeking a sign.” I’m not sure what they considered feeding 4000 people with 7 loaves and a few fish was—or what all the healings Jesus was doing at that time meant!
Jesus doesn’t argue back. He sighs, tells them “Amen, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.”
Then he does a very healthy psychological thing: he gets in a boat and leaves. He stops fooling around with the people who are hassling and discouraging him. He sets a boundary.
Admittedly, that didn’t turn out to be immediately reassuring, because tomorrow we will see the disciples’ cluelessness. But that cluelessness led Jesus to seek and question more…to get to that question that made all the difference: “Who do you say that I am?” (Thursday’s Gospel)
That was another psychologically healthy thing Jesus did: he kept gathering information and thinking until he came to truth and a peace. That peace gave him courage again (thus ending dis-courage-ment) and he went on to do what the Father was preparing him to do. He met change with his shoulders squared and his eyes “looking intently” at both disciples and destiny.
Cain and Abel
In our first reading, Cain does not handle discouragement so well. He raises crops, while his brother Abel raises cattle. Cain harvests his crops and “brought an offering to the Lord from the fruits of his soil.” God wasn’t overly pleased. But God was pleased with Abel’s offering of “one of the best firstlings of his flock.”
At first I asked as I read, “Why did God prefer sheep to bread?” But careful reading tells me that is not the question. Abel brought HIS BEST to God. Cain simply brought SOME to God—not his best. A commentary in my Bible says something very interesting: “Cain’s lack of generosity put him in a disposition to sin grievously.” It started with a failure of selfishness—maybe from simply not thinking.
And God was patient with that. He was not pleased with Cain’s lack of generosity, but he simply corrected him:
So the LORD said to Cain:
“Why are you so resentful and crestfallen.
If you do well, you can hold up your head;
but if not, sin is a demon lurking at the door:
his urge is toward you, yet you can be his master.”
That disposition of selfishness, when corrected by God, put Cain in a state of discouragement and resentment. As God noted, that put him on dangerous ground. He was prime for temptation.
So lack of generosity, when noted, led to discouragement and resentment. Discouragement and resentment led to envy. Envy led to murder.
Wow! Not good. Not good.
God Says to Me Today
Pay attention to negative emotions. Don’t pretend they aren’t there. Don’t cover them up. Be honest with myself, God, and others when they come. Attend to them. They are important.
As I look at them, ask myself, “What happened that I am feeling this way?” Seek truth. When Jesus sought truth, he decided the Pharisees didn’t deserve another sign—or any more conversation just then. So he took himself out of the situation. Yet, as we see through this week, it took more conversations for him to work through his discouragement…and perhaps resentment to find enough truth that his negative emotions went away.
If I discover that my own behavior or attitude/selfishness/failure to do my best is at the root of the issue…fix it as God encourages Cain to do. Try it again. Seek advice. Problem solve. Admit fault. It would have been a very simple solution for Cain to go back to his harvest and say, “Oh, I get it now, I need to give God the best.” Then do it.
Instead Cain discovered…too late….that God expects not only our personal best…but also God expects us to be our brother’s keeper. It isn’t just about us and God. It’s about us, God, and others.
Prayer:
Lord, THANK YOU for talking to me through this Scripture this morning. You lead me and guide me. I think you sent it to give me the message you gave Cain: beware of negative emotions. Do they come from fault in me—not the other? Yes, Lord, they do…at least in one troubling spot in my life. You have brought me to sight, Lord, now let me accept your admonition, “If you do well, you can hold up your head; but if not, sin is a demon lurking at the door: his urge is toward you, yet you can be his master.”
