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Pray for us!
Twenty-Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time C
I
suspect most of you have seen the “Life is Good” shirts
which
are so popular these days:
comfortable cotton T’s, each with a catchy, positive message.
comfortable cotton T’s, each with a catchy, positive message.
In
the past several years, three different people on three separate occasions
have
given me the same “Life is Good” shirt.
Oh,
they’re different colors, some long sleeved, one short—
but
the graphic is same:
a
pair of hiking boots pictured over the phrase,
Not all those who wander are
lost.
When
three people give you the same shirt…
…maybe
somebody’s trying to tell you something!
“Lost
and found” is on my mind these days.
On
Tuesday—as many of you know—
I
begin my 10 day, 120 mile hike through the Adirondacks.
Map,
compass, GPS, and an emergency transmitter
are
all packed among the rest of our essential gear…
…but
I still can’t help but be just a little bit nervous.
What
if we lose our way?
What
if we wander off the trail and get lost?
“Lost
and found” is obviously on the Lord’s mind this Sunday, too,
as
we hear the parables of a lost sheep,
of
a lost coin, and of two lost sons.
(Yes,
two lost sons:
one
lost because he wandered off into sin,
the
other lost because he stayed
and
wallowed in his self-righteousness.)
A
couple points for our reflection…
First,
Jesus
makes it clear that salvation is all about finding.
Most
of the time, we go on as if it’s all about us
finding God.
As
a matter of fact, exactly the opposite is the case.
Like
the shepherd who leaves the 99,
like
the woman who tears apart the entire house,
God
is willing to drop everything
in
a way that seems downright foolish—
even
to give his own Son up to death—
in
order to seek out and save us.
Can
we honestly recognize and admit the ways
we’ve
gotten off the trail?
Are
we willing to let God find us
and—rejoicing—to
lead us home?
Second,
while
the terrifying experience of being lost—
whether
in the woods or in this world of sin—
is
an essentially personal one,
it
is not at all unique.
If
I can first acknowledge that I sometimes go astray,
then
I’m much more likely to be concerned
about
others who’ve wandered from the fold.
Who’s
missing when we get together here
to
celebrate with a feast at our merciful Father’s table?
Who
are the ones who have wandered
away from the Church,
away
from Mass and the sacraments,
away
from the commands of God’s law?
If
we never stop and take notice
of
who else is here and who else is not,
we’ll
never miss them—
and
if we never miss them,
we’ll
never go off in search of them.
As
we celebrate our fifth annual
Holy Harvest Festival this Sunday,
we
need to consider the ways
we can gather in a harvest far
more precious
than sweet, golden corn or juicy, ripe tomatoes.
There
are so many souls just sitting there,
out
in the fields of the Lord!
Knowing
how living-changing and life-giving it is
for
God to find us,
we
must go out in his name and bring the wayward in.
I sure
hope and pray we won’t wander off
and
require the rangers to come to our rescue
while
hiking in the Adirondacks
these next couple of weeks.
But
I’m so glad and forever grateful
that
I have a patient and loving Father in heaven
who
never tires of pursuing me,
no matter how lost I’ve gotten—
happy
to embrace me and welcome me back home!
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