Wednesday, July 16, 2008

9th Sunday after Pentecost 13.7.08 Sermon

9th Sunday after Pentecost 13.7.08 Strength in trial

In the epistle we are told we are never tested beyond our strength. However, we often feel as though we are so tested!

God is telling us that whatever we are called upon to suffer in this life, no matter how hard it is, or seems to be – He will give us the grace necessary to cope with that suffering, and turn it to a fruitful outcome.

We hear that, and we believe it, but we still often feel we are at breaking point. According to God, however, we are not ever going to ‘break’ because we have grace to sustain us. Twenty times the present suffering would be no problem if we have twenty times as much grace to deal with it.

We have to ask for that grace and it is easy to panic at that point, but if we do ask we will receive.

(St Rose of Lima said that we would never complain again if we knew how carefully God measured out the cross for each one of us.)

Knowing our cross is tailor-made is a great comfort. No longer do we feel randomly cast out on the universe, but can feel secure that we are working through our troubles in direct consultation with God Himself!

No longer are we expecting God to be an efficient administrator siphoning off the sufferings, letting only joys come through to our desk (like a spam filter) .

So, should we pray for good things to happen, or should we just leave it with God, or even ask for suffering to save souls? St John Vianney would come back from heaven to suffer more to save souls. Amazing! A totally different way of looking at things. God will take advantage of such goodness and load suffering onto such a person. It is an honour as Our Lord said: be glad when they persecute you...

Do we pray for specific outcomes or just sit back and say, Lord send me anything You like.

In practice it is a mixture. We ask for good things, then say that if it does not come I will deal with it; with God’s help I will turn negatives into positives. Just make the best of it; adapt all the time.
Pray the house does not burn down, but if it does build another one!

Constant trust in God. We don’t always know why things go wrong, and don’t essentially need to know. Just reaffirm belief in God, get back on the horse, pick up the pieces and carry on.
If we all lived like that it would remove a lot of evil and that would clear up the mystery to some extent.

What if one person suddenly becomes better: still suffering but nature of suffering changes. Not so much the self induced punishments, but the purer mystical identification with Christ, and also persecution. It still hurts, maybe even more, but more grace available as well.
(St Faustina once asked for the pain of one thorn in Our Lord’s head – she received the thorn and it hurt, but she was glad to share His suffering.)
We pray simultaneously, not sure how it comes out in the wash: Thy will be done and Deliver us from evil.
His will is to deliver us finally, certainly, but not necessarily from all evil just yet.
We must expect some blows but we can at least raise the tone of the suffering, and give it that quality of identifying with Christ. Thus opening up so much more grace.

We must be prepared to suffer in that purer sense. It will be no more than we can bear because we get stronger all the time. Actually we are much happier this way because we trust God, and do not feel angry with Him for apparently deserting us.

Not only can we bear the suffering but we sense we are doing something useful as well – no less than helping to save souls.