(Wis 18:14-16, 19:6-9; Ps 104: 2-3, 36-37, 42-43; Lk 18: 1-8)
Isn’t the first reading for Mass today, from the book of Wisdom beautiful? It sounds just like poetry:
“When peaceful silence lay over all, and night had run the half of her swift course, down from the heavens, from the royal throne, leapt your all-powerful Word; into the heart of a doomed land the stern warrior leapt. Carrying your unambiguous command like a sharp sword, he stood, and filled the universe with death; he touched the sky, yet trod the earth.”
The bible has many different types of literary forms, but today’s reading from the book of Wisdom is pure poetry.
Poetry isn’t the main topic of today’s readings for Mass though, but the words in the second half of the first reading contains a key to the Gospel today as well:
“For, to keep your children from all harm, The whole creation, obedient to your commands, was once more, and newly, fashioned in its nature. Overshadowing the camp there was the cloud, where water had been, dry land was seen to rise, the Red Sea became an unimpeded way, the tempestuous flood a green plain; sheltered by your hand, the whole nation passed across, gazing at these amazing miracles. They were like horses at pasture, they skipped like lambs, singing your praises, Lord, their deliverer.”
These poetic verses were inspired by the profound experience that the people of God experienced when He parted the Red Sea, to deliver them from the bonds of slavery.
Imagine what a vast, complex, hopeless trap that God’s people must have felt like they were in, doomed to live a life of hard labor as slaves with no hope for a better future for themselves or their family.
Imagine the countless prayers that the Israelites must have prayed to be delivered from their bonds of slavery, a task that probably seemed insurmountable at the time. Impossible for man, but not impossible for God, a most compassionate and loving Father. No wonder the writer of the book of Wisdom greatly extolled God’s glory and praised Him through his beautiful poetry. The world has still to this day, never forgotten the power and might, the tender, protective and compassionate love of God for His people, when he answered their prayers in such a vast, magnificent and unimaginable way.
This leads right into today’s Gospel, when Jesus told the parable about the widow who never gave up asking the judge for a just decision. Jesus told his listeners they should pray continuously and never lose heart.
That’s easier said than done, in our modern world of instant gratification. We order fast food and get frustrated if it takes longer than a minute or two to receive our hot meal. Or – the timer on the microwave seems to take forever before our meal is ready…. We think our prayers should be answered quickly, and many people lose their patience with God if they do not receive the answer to their prayers soon. Heaven forbid if God takes his time, or does not answer our prayers in the way or manner that we expect him to.
Sometimes people blame God, or get mad at God if he doesn’t answer their prayers with the result that they want. They think he doesn’t love them. But that is the furthest thing from the truth. On the contrary, when we hurt, God hurts with us. His tender compassion and love for us is so vast, that we can not even begin to grasp what He already knows is right for us. We only see a piece of the puzzle, but God knows the big picture.
There is no problem in our lives that is insurmountable. No difficult situation that has no solution. No trap that we build for ourselves, that God can not set us free from. No heartache that can not eventually be healed and bring us peace. But we have to be open to God’s grace, and believe that he hears our prayers and cares what we are going through.
God often answers our prayer in a time, place, or manner we do not expect. We can fail to recognise His hand at work in our lives, if we do not have a regular prayer life. We get to know God and His divine nature, and what His grace is like, by developing a personal relationship with Him during an ongoing life of prayer, of dialogue and of listening to Him. Trust is developed over time, through drops of grace that add up to an intimate knowledge and union with God. We begin to trust Him more and more, as He proves His love for us in countless little ways.
Do you trust God? Completely trust Him with your very worst heartache? The toughest problem that you just can’t solve on your own? He has the power to help you, if you trust Him. The solution may not be what you requested, or even envisioned, but it is always the right thing for you, in the long run.
Do you believe God answers prayer, even when it takes a long time and it seems like he isn’t listening?
Jesus’s last words in today’s Gospel holds the key to the readings for Mass today:
“But when the Son of Man comes, will he find any faith on earth?”
That is a good question to think about today. How deep is your faith, trust in God, and the amazing power of prayer?
