14 Ordinary: July 6/7, 2024

Going back a few Sundays – we heard Jesus explaining what the Kingdom of God is like:  a man scattering seed on the ground and it growing - all the while the farmer not knowing how.  And like a mustard seed that grows into the largest of plants.
I think the question that hangs over our heads – and is expressed in different ways throughout the rest of our reading of St. Mark’s Gospel is – do we accept the kingdom, the plan God has for all of us and for the world – or do we reject it?
    Do we have faith in God, in ourselves, and others - that this kingdom can be made present in our midst – or do we lack that faith?

    So as we continued reading from Mark:
we had a story of the disciples in the boat - frighten out of their wits – Jesus right there with them – and Jesus has to ask:  why are you terrified?  Do you not yet have faith?
    Then two stories of healing - and those showing great faith in who Jesus is and what he is capable of doing.
    Now a story of Jesus in his native place, and the story ending with:  “So Jesus was not able to perform any mighty deeds there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying hands on them.  He was amazed at their LACK OF FAITH.
    SO the question - do we have faith?  And place our trust in God – or do we place our hopes in other things. . .
    The residents of Nazareth did not really believe that Jesus was capable of greatness.
    After all, Jesus was the son of a carpenter and he lived among the Nazarenes for years.
    He did not seem extraordinary and certainly didn’t embody the traits of what they thought a Messiah should be:  wearing royal garments or leading a strong army.
    How could they possibly believe their neighbor, Jesus, was capable of miracles – let alone that he was the Son of God?

    It made no sense! Like St. Paul saying when he is weak, then he is strong.  Or Jesus saying the first will be last and the last first:
It just doesn’t make sense!  But that’s the thing about faith.  It’s not always practical or sensible!

    Instead of providing Nazareth, and all of us –  with a royal prince dressed in velvet robes surrounded by armed guards – God sent his Son to be humbly born in a stable surrounded by animals, and to grow up a simple laborer.
    The people of Nazareth had plenty of common sense.  What they lacked was faith.  And it is faith – not common sense – which allows one to take the steps necessary to be a disciple of Christ.

    Faith allows one to believe what doesn’t make sense – and what’s not practical.
    So do we have faith – or just an abundance of common sense - which, as my grandfather used to say – really isn’t that common. . .
    If we are to be true disciples of Jesus – we are called to recognize that all we have is a gift from God.  Even faith itself – the spark of the divine that God places within each one of us is a gift – which we are called to nurture.
    Everything we have, is gift.  We are NOT solely responsible for our unique gifts or talents, our wealth, our health, or our surroundings.  Having just traveled outside of the country, and celebrating our Independence this week  – I think most of us take the gift of our country for granted – even with all of its rough edges.  But how blessed we are to live here.
    We are recipients of gifts bestowed upon us by our most generous God – and we are called to nurture all of them.
    Wouldn’t it make more sense to think we are great at something because we worked hard at it, and were born with some natural ability??
    Of course it would.  But who gave us that natural ability?  Who surrounded us with the resources, or gave us the family and friends to help develop our natural talents and use them in the world?
    The answer is of course – God.
Ultimately, having a steward’s heart – recognizing that all we have is a gift from God and being ever thankful for those gifts – is more valuable than common sense any day.
    And having a steward’s heart – allows the spark of the divine within us to grow – just like that mustard seed – that started small – but springs up and becomes the largest of plants.
    Good stewards have the faith to know – that God is in charge, and we are not.
    As we continue to read St. Mark’s Gospel for the next 21 weeks – with a little of St. John’s Gospel thrown in along the way – let’s continue to reflect on the questions – do we accept the kingdom, the plan God has for all of us and for the world – or do we reject it?
    Do we have faith in God, in ourselves, and others – that this kingdom can be made present in our midst  – or do we lack that faith. . .
    And to know – we just need to have faith.