29th Sunday Perseverance and Hope

I remember very few homilies, even my own, but one I do remember at least partially, was one Fr. Mike gave in the 90’s while Pastor of Our Lady of Wisdom, and while I was an unemployed geologist. He mentioned that he had been approached by someone needing assistance and all Mike had left was $20 in his wallet. Mike considered it, and gave his last $20 to the person. The next day in the mail there was a card from someone he had known, and they wrote that they thought of him and included in the card $20.

Parents, your faith and loyalty and perseverance in raising your children is amazing. Decades you work to instill values, virtues, habits into those kids. Repeating lessons, being good examples, hoping that something gets through… And getting frustrated. Yet, one day you watch them, maybe as teens or young adults and they do something that just blows your minds. They live those values. All that work, all that effort, all that patience and anger, finally it comes to fruition. I bet there is this deep joy…yes, we raised a good kid.

God works in mysterious ways, we know that cliché. Yet, it is a cliché that is true. God works in ways we do not always understand, and on a timescale that can transcend us.

This can be difficult for us; especially in our contemporary American society in which we feel a certain entitlement to getting what we want, when we want it and how we want it. It can be frustrating as God does not comply with our American sensibilities! We can fall into a temptation to believe that God does not listen, or that God is not there. It becomes a lesson in our own humility.

A couple I met many years ago as an employed Geologist wanted children. They tried and tried, nothing. So they got some medical help and tried, nothing. They had options for more invasive medical procedures, but they decided to forgo those. They made a decision simply to trust that whatever happens would happen. A few months later….

Jesus teaches about the need to persevere in prayer. We have to understand this is not about wearing God down, like we would our parents as children…”are we there yet, are we there yet?”

Persevering is not always about repeating the same want/desire over and over and over…it is about persevering in hope, remaining loyal to God and trusting that God is at work, in some way, in some manner, in some place. It is trusting in the process, trusting in God. Persevering in trust, even while we become tempted to give up.

Perseverance is also about mulling in our own minds, “What am I truly asking for?” and “What has God asked me to do?” Because we can also fall into the trap of thinking that God will take care of the matter, and we do not have to do anything. When in reality God has already empowered us to take care of the matter.

Another person, with a broken heart. Betrayed and gaslighted; trying to figure a way forward. The hurt was real, the anger real, the shame felt very real. We had a talk. I asked the person what does your understanding of the faith teach you. Forgiveness came the answer, trying not to be vengeful towards that betrayer… And this person found peace and healing from it.

God has shown us how to be compassionate, forgiving, merciful, kind, self-giving, generous…. Shown us through Scripture and exemplified this through Jesus.  And so our prayers must never be about changing others, only about changing ourselves. We want a better relationship with our friends, our parents, our children…then we ask God and persevere in that prayer to God asking ourselves to be changed so as to improve the relationship.

We pray for peace in this world, and then we must do our part to bring that peace; as much as we can.

We pray for the care of poor persons and an end to poverty, but that means we pray to become less attached to our own stuff, needs and be more generous in sharing.

God surprises us with how God answers prayers.  The whole Resurrection caught off the guard the disciples, and it opened them into a new understanding of life. We celebrate the reality that the Son of God becomes present in simple bread and wine, given to us to consume. How mysterious and surprising is that. How unanticipated was this! And if we can believe that this bread and wine become the person of the Son of God, can’t we then believe God remains loyal to us?

God remains always for us and with us; not even the execution of his Son stopped God’s love for us. God will answer our deepest desires, will be present for us…be patient, persevere, hope.