"I Was Wrong": The 3 Hardest Words a Catholic Will Ever Say

A Cross in the Mountains

While I was celebrating the Mass in Spanish, I remembered something that happened when I was on missions in Mexico. We went to a really remote village up in the mountains, and on Good Friday they have a beautiful tradition of doing the Stations of the Cross. They decorate the place so beautifully.

Of course, they invited us to participate in the procession. And it was a long Stations of the Cross. We are talking about maybe three or four miles of stations. Along the way we were singing hymns, and I was thinking, oh, this is nice. The people were so happy to see a priest there. They were saying, “Father, it's so nice to have you here.”

I was feeling good. We are in Mexico. The weather was warm, but it was okay.

Then, at the second station, where Jesus takes up his cross, they said, “Father, come over here. We have a cross for you.”

For a minute I was going to say, “Oh no, I'm okay.” But they said, “No, no, we have a cross for you.” And I saw they had a cross for everyone. Little crosses. I was going to pick up one of the little crosses, and they said, “Oh, no, no, no. This one.”

And it was pretty much the same size. It was huge.

All I could think was, it's warm, it's hot, I'm going to get dehydrated. This is like three miles and I have the cross on the second station.

“Lead Me, Guide Me” — But Where?

There is a song we sing sometimes, even here. It's the one that goes, “Lead me, guide me along the way.” And it's very joyful, very upbeat. Like we are going to a party.

But where are we going? As long as we are going the same place I want to go, then I'm okay. But if it's somewhere else...

So is the Lord really leading me and guiding me if I am going where I want to go? No.

“Lead me, guide me” means the place I really do not want to go, but I know I have to go.

So where is the Lord leading us? The Lord is always leading us to Calvary. Always. There is no one here who will escape suffering, difficulties, challenges, betrayal, illness. None of us. None of us.

I don't want to go. The Lord's way is not fair. I don't want to go.

The Gospel of the Two Sons

And so that is what makes the gospel so remarkable. A father says to his son, “Son, go to the vineyard.” And the son says, “No. I'm not going to go.”

I don't know how many of you had a father you could say no to. I did not. When my father told me I was going to do something, I did it. I don't think I ever told my father no, except when it came to my vocation.

But in this gospel, the son says, “No. I will not go.”

We always want to teach our children to be confident in themselves, and we do have to teach them that. But we also have to help them open their eyes, their ears, their heart, and their mind when they are not making the right choice.

I think if, instead of jumping on your child the moment they say no, you just say “okay” and walk away, nine out of ten times that child is going to come back and say, “I'm sorry.” Leaving a little room and time for grace is important. It gives the child time to come to their senses.

Nobody Is Simply Good or Bad

These conversions that happen in our lives, they are not about who is the good son and who is the bad son. He's good. She's bad. No one is like that. We all have this good and this bad that we are constantly battling.

My will be done. Thy will be done. My will. God's will. It is this constant, constant clashing. Nobody is simply good and nobody is simply bad. We have this internal struggle throughout our entire life.

There are many times in our life where we say, “I don't want to go,” and then eventually, “Lead me, Lord. Guide me.”

What Are You Saying No to God About?

Today's readings invite every one of us to reflect. Everyone in the pews, everyone standing, everyone here today. The Lord is inviting us to reflect.

What am I saying no to God about?

Am I saying no when God is asking me to forgive? Am I saying no when God is asking me to fix my relationships? Am I saying no when he is asking me to be generous? Am I saying no when he wants me to do something?

There is something we are each struggling with.

And as St. Paul tells us, the Lord emptied himself. He took on the form of a servant, and he was obedient, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. He humbled himself.

Obedience requires faith. Humility requires honesty.

The First Steps

The goal of today is to be able to say, with a sincere heart and mind, the first steps that are so important for a Christian.

The first step: I was wrong.

The second: I'm sorry.

The third: Forgive me.

The fourth: I need you.

The fifth: Help me.

And finally: Lead me, Lord.

Amen.