We as humans, make life so darn complicated. Too complicated. We think too much. I’m not talking about things as it pertains to science, or physics, or inventing the latest technology. No, I’m talking about in the every day. Everyday life.
We are all searching. We are all looking for something better. Even those who don’t believe in God or any type of afterlife, they still are striving for a better life for themselves and the ones they love.
And so in this search throughout life, we look for things that make us happy. Things we think will make us happy. We get distracted. We hope for things. We pray for things. But then we get impatient when they don’t happen immediately. And so then, rather than being persistent and faithful, we move on to something else. And when that doesn’t fulfill, then we move on. We have so much swirling around us, but we keep pouring more on. Seeking. Searching. Hoping.
We try to analyze why we are the way we are, or who we want to be. We so often keep trying to look at the past and point blame, rather than look to who we are, the person that God made, and who we are made to be.
We keep trying to figure this all out on our own. It’s about living in the now. I don’t mean quitting your job and jumping out of a plane or doing everything on your bucket list type of now. I mean just stop trying to control destiny, and stop trying to figure it all out on your own, and have faith in God, in every moment, that it is all part of His plan. Have faith that Christ is walking along side you. Guiding you. Have faith that He will not let you fall too far, and will be there to pull you up.
It means doing the right thing, letting humility replace our pride, and admitting that we are wrong and saying we’re sorry. Wow, how many conflicts could be avoided if we just simply did that?
I’m sure that many times during his journey to the new promised land, Abraham felt lost and misguided, and questioned why? I’m sure he tried numerous times to figure things out on his own. But his faith superseded all that. He trusted God, even to the point where he knew that if he sacrificed his son Isaac, that God would raise him.
I wish I had that much faith. I don’t necessarily want to be tested as Abraham was, but then again, we’re all tested in the ways that we need to be, for the purpose that God designed us for. This was Abrahams purpose.
How often in life do we completely put our faith and trust in God? We put our faith in other things, material things, all the time. But when we don’t understand, when we don’t see the path, or when we don’t see the destination in a particular stage of life – how often do we put our complete faith in Christ?
Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen.
We all have our hopes, and we must trust them to God, yet know that we may never fully see them. Abraham never saw the vastness of his descendants. Moses never made it to the promised land. But they paved the way. The laid the foundation and steps necessary for others to finish the job, and pave the way yet for others.
This too is our role in life. We do what is right – as sons and daughters, as parents, as siblings, as friends, as co-workers, as acquaintances, as strangers, and yes, even as enemies. We lay the foundation for others to follow. We point them in a direction based upon our example. We follow Jesus for our example and the path that he laid. Look to Christ and let Him point out the path of least resistance. Don’t try to blaze your own trail in life.
But so often, we think our own way is better. We don’t prepare. We just cross our fingers and leap blindly. We don’t realize the gift we’ve been given, and we continue to insist doing things our own way. We put things off to the last minute, or for a later time. “We’ll do it tomorrow…”, we say. Too often, we don’t prepare ahead of time.
Jesus talks about preparation today. He talks about giving into the temptations and pleasures in the moment and neglecting the work that needs to be done. The tasks of preparation we have to do. Rather than trying to analyze every hidden meaning in His parable in the Gospel reading today, His message is real simple.
Is your soul prepared? If you were to die today, would your soul be in a state where you could get into Heaven? Or are you putting things off – putting off Confession, putting off prayer, putting off the tasks you know you need to do for a later time, when you feel you have more time? Guess what? Often that time never comes…
Perhaps this is hitting home more as I get older, or perhaps it’s just seeing things happen in the world where your life can be extinguished in the blink of an eye. But I’ve really been contemplating the state of my soul, and examining my readiness. We all need to do this, every day. Sometimes all throughout the day.
It’s really not that difficult. Preparing your soul doesn’t take much thought. Deep down, we know what to do. I think it takes much more thought and energy trying to rationalize our decisions, and build our own very little, personal version of our Faith, rather than simply following Christ and seeking His mercy.
I think it takes far more thought and energy thinking about what all else we have to do, or why we can’t do something, rather than just doing the right thing in the first place. You ever notice how easy it is when you simply do the right thing?
An example is in our work. Imagine you’re in your job, whatever that is, and you know what you need to do for that day. But then you get distracted, take a break, flip through your phone and scroll through Facebook or something like that. You’re wasting time, but your job still needs to get done. And so you either work in a frenzy to make up for lost time, work extra hours, or you fail to get the job done. Had you just put the phone down, and chose to do your tasks, you would have been in a better situation to get your work done, with far less stress. This is how we get tempted – with endless jargon in our lives. Stuff that gets in the way, that wastes time while we don’t even realize it, and then suddenly it may be too late.
If we just make the choice, to do the task when it needs to be done, it’s such an easier path.
But it’s hard to do. Which is why we need help in guiding us. Let Jesus help you through life, Don’t try to do it on your own. Use the gifts He has given you, the Sacraments, to remove the burden and stress. Stop thinking so much, and just do. And believe me, I definitely need to follow my own advice…
Get out of your own way and let Him help you prepare your soul for this journey through life. And let Him use you as an instrument to help prepare the souls of others, because that’s how He works!
The Gospel ends today with Jesus saying, “Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.”
We’ve been entrusted with more. We have been given a gift by Christ, a gift of grace and mercy. And it’s this gift that gives us the ability through Him, to prepare our souls for Heaven.
We as Christians, and as Catholics, have the responsibility to simply try and live this example every day, with all those we encounter, and do the right thing. We’re going to fail from time to time, but we’ve got to get up, and let others see how we let God guide us, and let Him work through us, and yes, how we let Him forgive us. And God willing, we and those we encounter in our life, will be better prepared for eternity.
WIS 18:6-9; PS 33; HEB 11:1-2, 8-19; LK 12:32-48
