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RSVPing the Lord!
Luke 14: 15-24
Petition:Lord, help me to put aside all excuses when invited to your banquet. 1. Valuing the Invitation Some of the happiest moments of our lives are spent around a banquet table. Milestones are celebrated there, friendships grow deeper, and relationships are renewed. Could this be why Jesus so frequently used this image to describe heaven? Let’s spend a moment thinking about the joy of heaven — of this never-ending feast. We cannot fathom what it will be like to see God and the inexhaustible beauty of his Triune majesty. And the company will be great! In the heavenly banquet it doesn’t matter where you sit: You’ll be next to a saint, and the conversation will be wonderful! 2. Legitimate RSVP? Going to a banquet takes some effort. You need to get a babysitter, pick out something to wear and possibly alter previous plans. If the invitation isn’t valued, that effort won’t be forthcoming; instead, you will make excuses. They may express a reality — those oxen are ready to go! — but they camouflage the real issue: That particular banquet doesn’t seem worth it. This should make us reflect on the excuses we have about our spiritual lives. Do they mask a growing spiritual mediocrity? 3. The House Will Be Filled! The master of the house is upset because the people that should have been the first to accept his invitation turn him down. But everything is purchased, and the party is ready to go. Someone will have a chance to enjoy it. Here perhaps is another angle for reflection: We are that master’s servants. He wants his house to be filled, and he needs us to make it happen. The servants are quick and agile, and they understand what the master wants: “There’s still room!” So too, let’s ask the Lord to give us apostolic hearts that won’t rest until the house is full. What a feast that will be! Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, I am looking forward to the day when we will be with you at the feast of the Kingdom of Heaven. Help me to understand that the joy and happiness of that banquet are worth the sacrifice of any worldly priority. So often I have excuses. Give me strength never to be pulled away from you. Resolution: I will accept God’s invitation and not put anything in front of my prayer life today. |
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| The Decline of Civility Is Real, But Can Be Fixed | ||
Rom 12:5-16 / Lk 14:15-24
For quite a few years now, a familiar theme in more thoughtful publications has been what is described as "the decline of civility." It touches upon every aspect of life, whether it be on the highway or on television or in debates in the halls of congress. In word and deed, people are oft times stunningly aggressive, outrageously insulting, and incomprehensibly insensitive to the feelings and needs of others. It's not the whole story of our early twenty-first century society, but it's a major strand that ought not to be ignored.
Jesus summed up a radically different vision of what society should be in his Golden Rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." And St. Paul, in today's first reading, fleshes out a particularly pertinent element of this: "Anticipate each other in showing respect." That idea of anticipating others' needs certainly turns the table from the "grab what you can" model of living. And there's a kind of pleasure in escaping the prison of one's self and one's hasty dash to the next whatever.
Take the time, usually just a few seconds are needed, to anticipate your neighbor's need of the moment, which is mainly just to be treated like a valuable human being, and respond as your heart dictates. It's remarkable how something so simple can change a day and a life.