Thursday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time
(II Kings 24:8-17; Matthew 7:21-27)
Did you ever notice yourself saying grace before eating when
people are around but forgetting to do it when you are alone? I have.
It is disconcerting to think that Jesus may forsake me for my pretension
as indicated in today’s gospel.
Or perhaps we have given a sizeable amount to Catholic
Charities and now figure that the Lord will overlook our pettiness with family
and friends. He is saying today that he
expects better from us. He does not care
about any “mighty deeds” that we have done.
Rather what matters is our attention to the everyday details of a holy
life: prayer, humility, kindness.
We may think we are as good as the next guy and better than
most, but such calculation does not impress Jesus. He calls us to perfection and sends us the
Holy Spirit to make that happen. If we focus
on our accomplishments and not on his words, we settle for less and may end up disappointed. But if we do good because Jesus has told us
to do it, without aiming to impress him or anyone else, then we will find
ourselves in his gracious company forever.
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