Luke 10:1-9 Clearing The Way

Luke 10:1-9  Clearing The Way

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The Lord Jesus appointed seventy-two disciples whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit.  He said to them, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.”

He was driving home from a football game.  His team had lost (like always) and he was in a bad mood.  Instead of taking the normal (safe) route home, he decided to take a different route.  It was late at night when he noticed a woman on side of the road.  She was waiting.  She was a prostitute. 

This young man, a senior in high school, lived under very strict rules at home.  Although he never complained, he was a bit resentful of his life.  As he was speaking to me, he reminded me of the eldest son in the parable of the Prodigal Son.  Yes, he was a solid Christian man.  He went to church on Sunday.  He prayed before meals.  He was respectful to his elders.  He kept his virginity.  But he wasn’t happy.  He felt like his family was keeping him from the best things in life!

He decided to turn into an abandoned lot.  He stopped the car.  She walked up to it.  He rolled down the window.  He looked at her.  She looked at him.  But when she looked at him, he felt as though she looked right through him.  She smiled at him, shook her head and said to him, “No.  You shouldn’t be here.  This is not for you.  Go home.”

He took off, ashamed of himself and crying as he had never cried before.  A prostitute had saved his soul.

Maybe she was an undercover cop.  Maybe she was a real-life prostitute.  But no matter what, this young man will never forget what happened to him that night. 

Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your Kingdom (cf. Psalm 145:12).  Paradoxically, morals, values and principles are black and white.  People are not.  What is right or wrong is clear.  That people are good or bad is not. 

Of course, much of who we are is connected to what we do.  But instead of focusing on what we do, the Lord focused on who we are.  This is why the Lord was so successful in converting the sinner.  He was able to look beyond the sin and see the broken heart behind every “Sinner”.  By healing the heart, he eliminated the bleeding, the sinning. 

I chose you from the world, to go and bear fruit that will last.  No matter what state of life I am in, I can give glory to God.  No matter what I have done, I can give glory to God.  No matter what work I do, I can give glory to God.  No matter what I have or where I am, I can give glory to God.  No matter how sinful I am, I can give glory to God.  For God chose the weak to make the strong look weak. 

He chose us (the weak) to carry his work along.    

So what do you work for?  Who do you work for? Who’s your boss?  Do you work for heaven and earth or just for earth?  Do you work for God and man or just for man?  When was the last time you invited someone to go to Church with you?  Never??? 

“Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along the way.”  Leave behind your pride (money = security), your vanity (sandals = image), and your sensuality (greetings = seeking approval).

What I must do is pretty clear.  Who I am is not so clear.  Let’s make it all a lot clearer by clearing the Way of the Lord. 

Lk 4:31-37 Pushing And Pulling

Lk 4:31-37  Pushing And Pulling

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Jesus went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee…In the synagogue there was a man with the spirit of an unclean demon… Jesus rebuked him and said, “Be quiet!  Come out of him!”  Then the demon threw the man down in front of them and came out of him without doing him any harm… News of him spread everywhere in the surrounding region.

This morning I celebrated Mass at St. Monica and Ursuline Academy.  I was surprised to see that most of the smiles on the children’s faces had already vanished.  They haven’t been in school for more than two weeks and already the enthusiasm and joy have dimmed away.

School can be a very violent place.  Teachers can be very violent.  What teachers do to their students is very similar to what people do to doors?  They push and pull at them ALL DAY LONG.

Teachers, like coaches, are constantly pushing, slamming or jamming stuff into children’s brains and then demanding they give it back.  Coaches love to explain new plays and tactics to their players only to challenge them to give it all they got!

But what teachers do is nothing less than what we are expected to do throughout our life.  Our entire live may be summed up as pushing and pulling.  Or, in more familiar words:  giving and receiving. 

This is the meaning of life.  This even explains how we got here.  Doesn't the doctor's tell every mother:  "Push!!!" while he pulled?  This is the reason why we are here, and this is what we do…ALL THE TIME.   Even breathing consists of pulling in and pushing out.  It’s not only to our benefit; it is to the benefit of all.  It is what all living beings do.  Even God does it!  He is constantly giving and receiving. 

Christ came into the world to give himself to the world.  He came to give, to give himself, and he expects us to give back as well. 

At every Mass, we receive the body, blood, soul and divinity of the Lord in the Eucharist.  He gives Himself to us because He expects us to be givers like Himself to others.    This is the only reason why He allows us to receive Him:  for our benefit and for the benefit of others. 

The Lord went to Capernaum to heal a man who was sick; a man who was being tormented by an evil spirit.  What this evil spirit consisted of could have been anything:  a fear, a thought, a past event, a recurring nightmare.  Regardless, this man was living hell on earth.  The Lord came to Him and pulled out of him whatever was in him, and gave him back his life.  In return, word spread like wildfire throughout the region of what the Lord had done.  The healed man was giving to others what he had received.

Why are we here?  Why do we breathe?  This morning a small child wrapped in his mother's arms said, "To be happy!"  Amen to that!  But what makes us happy?  Is it just receiving?  Is it just giving?  The answer is giving and receiving; loving and being loved.  It’s that simple.  It's that remarkable.  And what is even more remarkable is the following:  the deeper you breathe in, the more you breathe out.  When you receive more, you must give more. 

In order to live, we must breathe in and breathe out.  In order to live happily ever after, we must give and receive.  Let’s all take a deep breath today.  Let’s give more than just ourselves.  Let’s give the Lord, the source of all blessings, of all life, of all meaning and purpose, to those around us. 

Get rid of the devil and allow the Lord to come in.