I believe that God is the Creator of all life and the One True Authority over all. But when I look around these days, I find it harder to see His authority being placed first in the world. To clearly hear His voice and see His will, I have to consciously look beyond all the things that are not of God being blasted at me, sometimes in very unexpected places. We Christians are seeing more and more things in the world that don't sit right with us. But, instead of sitting in conversation with God ~ The One, True Voice of Authority ~ to find out what is right or wrong, what is true or false, what is real or fabricated, what is healthy or toxic, we chat about it in closed circles, or we turn to the millions of opinions from strangers online.
Life is a puzzle and there is so much murmuring!
How can we possibly determine truth from deception or mere opinion?
We hear Jesus address this very topic in the Gospel Reading on the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time which we celebrated yesterday:
The Jews murmured about Jesus because he said, "I am the bread that came down from heaven," and they said, "Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph? Do we not know his father and mother? Then how can he say, 'I have come down from heaven'?" Jesus answered and said to them, "Stop murmuring among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day. It is written in the prophets: They shall all be taught by God. Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world." ~ John 6:41-51
The Jews were talking about Jesus to each other, rather than going to Him directly and asking Him to help them understand what He said. When we make our way through the challenges of life via speculation, we are not in tune with the mission of Jesus Christ. When we turn to the myriad of voices out there without turning to the Lord, we are in trouble. The lines of right/wrong, truth/falsehood, fact/fiction become blurred. With all the murmuring, I become unsure of my role in all of it. I find myself questioning whether this or that is "bad enough" to speak up and do something about it. Is it better to ignore what's happening, or do I just cave in and accept that it's out of my control? Can I contribute to the healing that is needed, or will I just get sucked into the controversy? Will my prayers be sufficient to do my part to reveal God's truth? It can be overwhelming.
How do we walk faithfully with Jesus alongside others who seem to be on a trajectory that is contradictory to God's Word? How does my witness of God's Love and Salvation fit in with their freedom of expression and opinion? It is a puzzle.
I am a lover of puzzles of all kinds -- from the classic jigsaw puzzles in a box to the Apps on my phone. The traditional puzzles with thousands of pieces and similar colors were always my favorite. They would cover my table and occupy my attention into the wee hours of the morning. All the puzzles have one correct solution. In order to create the beautiful picture, each piece has to be in the right place as designed by the puzzle creator.
We are each created by God and we are all given specific, unique pieces designed with a specific, unique purpose to fulfill God's plan. We don't all have the same pieces, although we have much in common physically, emotionally, and spiritually. We can't complete our beautiful life as God planned without seeking Truth and Guidance from Him, our Creator. Try as we might, no matter how determined we are, when we don't seek God's will but instead rely on our ideas of truth or what others claim to be truth, our puzzle pieces will not fit together as He intended. We will not find true joy and peace.
There is a whole lot of murmuring about a whole lot of things in our world right now. Who can we trust? What is the best response?
Do we just keep our mouths shut and wait it out hoping for the best?
I think my parents and grandparents who lived through the Great Depression would not understand or tolerate the state of our world. They put God first and relied on His Word to find Truth. They turned to Sacred Scripture and Prayer to navigate the puzzle of life. They stood firm in their Faith and never cowered or looked the other way when the world contradicted God. I have never been shy about my Faith. But these days, I find myself unsure about whether or not to speak out about controversial things. How often do we take the comfortable stance of sitting quietly in Faith, but never take the risk of standing in the Truth?
Is that good enough? Is that what the Lord is calling us to do?
As disciples, are we not called to meet others where they are on the journey and lovingly guide them to seek God's Truth? Have we fallen into a position of detachment, fear, tolerance, and indifference.
It is a puzzle and there is so much murmuring!
Whether the issue is politics, sports, school policy, laws, rights, religion, gender, sexuality, morality, the workplace, food supplies, business practices, healthcare, technology, or entertainment -- amidst all the murmuring, we need to seek God's Truth. Who should we trust and follow? What does God want you to say and do for yourself, your family, your friends, your church, your community, the next generation?
Have you asked Him? It's time for us to ask Him.
Last Thursday we heard Jesus ask His disciples, "Who do you say that I am?"
Simon Peter gives the right answer, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
Jesus blesses Peter and seems to let out a sigh of relief -- finally, he gets it! Jesus gives Peter the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven, making him the first pope declaring that Peter will see that the Church continues to spread the Truth in the Good News and lead more followers to the Kingdom.
Shortly after that moment, Jesus began to tell His disciples about the hardship, suffering, and death He would soon suffer. Peter seems to panic and says to Jesus, "God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you." Wasn't it good that Peter wanted to protect and spare his friend and leader from such ridicule and violence? But, Jesus' response seems to treat Peter as if now he's behaving like the worst of the worst! “Get behind me, Satan! You are an obstacle to me. You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” Mt 16:13-32
Peter was missing an important piece. He was trying to complete the puzzle with his own ideas of what should happen. He didn't listen to everything Jesus said before responding. He didn't catch that Jesus would be raised from the dead in three days. Death had to happen before Resurrection could occur. That was a crucial piece of the puzzle that only God could put in place. Sometimes we have to get out of our comfort zone to be true disciples of Christ and do His work.
All life was created to form a beautiful masterpiece of God's creation. We must listen to all that Jesus is saying before we respond. We must continually ask Him if He wants us to remain quiet in our Faith, or does He want us to stand in the Truth?
God is the solution to the puzzle of Life. We have to stop murmuring among ourselves. We have to listen to the Father and learn His Truth.
Jesus said, "Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him the Father, God, has set his seal." So they said to him, "What can we do to accomplish the works of God?" Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent." (Jn 6:27-29)
Our work is to believe in Jesus and know that He holds the most important piece of the puzzle of life.
As I reflected on recent news events, I could clearly see so many examples of people thinking "not as God does, but as human beings do." I will continue to pray and work harder to think more like God and less like me. Will you join me? If all believers do this, Truth will prevail in our world. When we are faced with a puzzle of life, the Lord will supply the piece we are missing. He will always answer when we call on Him to show us the Truth and the Way to fullness of Life. He will let us know when to sit quietly and when to take a stand. He will send forth His Holy Spirit to equip us with the courage and words to understand and do our part to fulfill His plan.
Very timely and appropriate reflection for sure ! How much our world could benefit from attending to His Word !