Monday, March 8, 2010

From Eating Fish to Making Fruit

Well it's Week 3 of Lent...how's it going? Think on that for a second...Now in the constant effort to not eat meat on Fridays, I've now taste-tested fish at McDonald's, Wendy's and Burger King, which I guess is getting the job done. I prefer Wendy's in case you were wondering or even care. But let's get to what really matters...other than the material things like giving something up, how is your soul doing? Now is not the time to forget Jesus' words on Ash Wednesday.

The Gospel on that day was from Mt 6:1-6, 16-18, and Jesus spoke about giving alms and expecting nothing in return, while not making a big deal to others about fasting or praying. It's not time to slip in those categories. That should all be a big deal, but it needs to be between you and God. Sometimes you may feel like you need to try and get that attention to please God, but it is much better to spread God's words through your everyday actions and good deeds, instead of telling people you are praying, or neglecting your appearance because you are fasting.

If you go into your room and lock the door like Jesus said God still sees you praying, He is still there. This week's reading from Exodus talks about Moses and the Burning Bush. Have you had any moments like that in your life lately? It's kind of like a Transfiguration moment, and God is telling and showing you what to do in the form of signs and your own conscience. That's what Moses saw, and what he felt, and was moved with faith. It's that moment when something hits you, and you are positive that you need to make a change. Or a conversation where the person you are talking to says something that simply makes sense to you, and that you can apply to your own situation. Even a song lyric can do it...usually Michael Jackson for myself I must admit. Don't shy away from stuff like that, it's often God in disguise.

One sentence in that passage really struck me..."Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God."

At this point in not only Lent, but even your life, you may be afraid of facing God. Moses was one of the best guys of all time, even featured in the Transfiguration, yet he could not look at the Father. Much like him, you may have some guilt or even be ashamed about a decision you made. It can be scary to think about how that looks to God.

The thing is, God still loves us. He wants us to look at Him, to feel that forgiveness and hope that comes with being a Christian. As Father Carsten said in his homily last night, suffering is a part of life, and we are human, so we are sinners as well. Our everyday struggles are a part of life too. You have to deal with it at some point. You have to stand up and look God in the eye. Having faith in Him gives us that hope that everything will be alright.

Luke's Gospel has an interesting little story this week that can serve as an example of that hope. Jesus tells it..."There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard, and when he came in search of fruit on it but found none, he said to the gardener, ‘For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none. So cut it down. Why should it exhaust the soil?’ He said to him in reply, ‘Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down."

Ever feel like that fig tree, kind of sticking out in the field, nothing really going right? The person with the fig tree didn't give up on it though. It's like the time after your moment of realization like Moses'. First, you are scared, next, you feel guilty, then you have to find a way to move on. That's the most important time, the time to cultivate and grow. It's nice when one thing can go right, like getting a job, rebuilding an old friendship, or getting a free pizza for dinner, which can tip the scales and make one thing after another go right. Before that moment, it was the complete opposite, everything felt like it was going wrong, right? But God doesn't want that terrible cycle to continue. It won't. He wants us to be happy, and then grow and learn from those little experiences, and get things rolling in the right direction to make a better person in the end. We need to work at it though, because we need to put into action the tools or gifts that God gives us...which is the fertilizer. With that we have the ability to make the fruit. And you know what, realistically, if we don't work at it, we will get cut down, and not be nearly as happy or as good at making others happy as we can be.

All in all, we can't forget about our goals at the beginning of Lent. People don't need to know about your own relationship with God, cultivate it yourself. That fig tree was different, but so are we. We just need to recognize that we are wrong sometimes, which can be linked to our own suffering. And if we don't see it ourselves, much like Moses, we might get a Burning Bush or two sent from God along the way. If we take that sign from God and do the work, goodness really will spread like fire.

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