Deacon Kevin Gingras
September 15th, 2024
Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/091524.cfm
Is 50:5-9a Ps 116:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 8-9
I saw a post the other week on social media. It was a picture of a famous person with words emblazoned over him that he probably never said:
Give People as much as they give you, don’t waste your 100% for their 10%
Regardless of whoever said it, this quote goes against today’s readings.
"Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well, "but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead
When we give to those who are in need do we expect anything back? I should hope not, so when we give to them, we give one hundred percent of what we offer for zero percent return, that is the essence of charity. To give and expect nothing in return.
Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel will save it
I tried to imagine if Jesus gave his one hundred percent to only those who gave Him back one hundred percent of themselves. Well, the martyrs would do ok with this math. Perhaps some others around the world might do ok, those like Mother Theresa. I certainly know if this is the math Jesus used I’d be in big trouble.
On the other hand, imagine if Jesus Himself only gave ten percent. We certainly wouldn’t be here today talking about him, he would have surely been considered just a false prophet or charlatan. Jesus had to give us more than ten, or 50, or even 99 percent. Jesus had to provide us with one hundred percent of Himself to make up for Original Sin and the sins of the world until the end of time.
Shouldn’t we do the same for Jesus? Give Him one hundred percent of ourselves? It’s hard, even Jesus’ closest friends had trouble with this in the beginning. Judas gave nowhere near one hundred percent back, instead, he betrayed Jesus. Even Peter came up short. Jesus was telling the disciples how the Son of Man must suffer and die and rise again. Well, typical Peter, talks before thinking and tells Jesus that this is unacceptable to him. Jesus responds to him with a different rebuke that must have cut Peter to the heart:
Get behind me, Satan. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do
How do we think - as humans or as God? The Gospel begins with that great question - “Who do you say that Jesus is”? A good question for all Christians - who is Jesus to you? Who do you say he is? Is He someone worth one hundred percent of you? We need to think of God in everything we do. Not easy. How do we make everything we do a prayer?
I was in confession once and I told the priest that I sometimes give God only the last moments of my day, when I’m tired and only have a little left to give. Based on my other sins he knew I was married, worked, and had children. He asked me what I did for my kids during the week. I told him I was a soccer coach, scout leader, baseball coach, youth minister, and other things; he wanted a full list. Then he mentioned how I worked to provide for my family as well. The priest told me that is my prayer to God. If instead of doing these things I prayed all day I would be neglecting my duties as a father and that, in itself could be considered sinful. I still struggle to keep all that I do during the day a prayer, with God always in mind, but the more I pray about it, the easier it gets.
So pray! Pray often, pray hard and mighty prayers asking the Holy Spirit to guide you to always have a prayer on your mind, no matter what task you are trying to accomplish at that moment from cleaning the house to attending Mass!
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton once said,
“We must pray without ceasing, in every occurrence and employment of our lives – that prayer which is rather a habit of lifting up the heart to God as in a constant communication with Him.”
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