Memorial of Saint Andrew Dũng-Lac, Priest, and Companions, Martyrs

“See that you not be deceived, for many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he,’ and ‘The time has come.’ Do not follow them! When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified; for such things must happen first, but it will not immediately be the end.” Then he said to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be powerful earthquakes, famines, and plagues from place to place; and awesome sights and mighty signs will come from the sky.”

As followers of Jesus, we pray for the end times to come and hope to be found among the good and faithful servants when it arrives, but we shouldn’t be so focused on the Day of Judgment that we lose sight of our chances to love God and His children today. Yes, it’s good to plan for the future, but we should never do so at the expense of doing God’s Will in the present. Our best laid plans cannot foresee everything that will come into our lives and so we should be willing to let go and let God lead us when the time comes. When things don’t turn out how we hoped or imagined they might, we should not lose faith, but rather see our trials and tribulations as opportunities to grow in our trust of the Lord. When the end comes, we will know it, so rather than worrying about when it will come, we should focus our energies on ensuring that if it does come, we will be ready for it.

What things have we hoped for, but never obtained? Do we believe God has a good reason for keeping these things away from us? Are we properly focused on being the best disciple of Christ today rather than tomorrow?

O Lord, we want only to follow you, not our own petty desires.

Amen.

Memorial of Saints John de Brébeuf and Isaac Jogues, Priests, and Companions, Martyrs

Someone in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.” He replied to him, “Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?” Then he said to the crowd, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.

Jesus warns us to guard against all greed. This, of course, is easier said than done, but nonetheless we are all asked to undertake this herculean task. Greed comes in many forms. Sometimes our greed is so subtle it is difficult to recognize if we do not take a step back from life and ask God for help in becoming generous people. We all fall into the trap of greed. Sometimes we get upset with others for “wasting” our time. Other times we become so focused on achieving a goal or obtaining an object that we do not stop to ask ourselves what goods we are sacrificing in order to get these things. Perhaps we feel like we deserve to have something, but if we are truly honest with ourselves we are not entitled to anything. All the goods we have are gifts from God. We did not do anything to truly earn them. God is the source of our success and inspiration. So when we demand our “fair” share, we are letting the sin of greed talk through us. Instead, we should be thankful for what little we have and happily surprised when we receive other gifts from God. This is the difference between expectation and hope. Greed makes us expect success and possessions, while hope is always grateful for whatever God gives us.

Are we greedy in our dealings with God and others? Or do we always give thanks for even the littlest gifts God provides for us? Are we children of expectation or hope?

O Lord, guard us against all greed so that we might become rich in your spiritual gifts.

Amen.