God Reveals Himself In Our Own Brokenness and Suffering!

As I look back on my life, I can events that occurred in my life of brokenness and sufferings: from heart aches to heart breaks, from physical illness to spiritual illnesses, to experience tremendous loss.  My responses to God was all to similar, it was a simple question, "Why God?"  These words would escape from my heart through a sigh.

The past couple of days for daily Mass we have been reading about the life of Joseph in the Old Testament.  Joseph's story in Genesis begins at the age of 17, his brothers desire his death, but instead of killing him they decide to at least benefit from his life and sell Joseph into slavery (Gen 37).  Joseph ends up in Egypt to be falsely accused of adultery and ends up in an Egyptian prison.  While in prison he interprets a butler's dream and gives a good interpretation, afterwards he tells the butler to not to forget him. The butler was released from prison and what happens? The butler forgets Joseph for 2 years!  You can only imagine the same words coming across Joseph's mouth, "Why God?"

When Joseph turns 30, Joseph is raised up out of prison and placed at Pharaoh's right hand.  Joseph was placed in charge with the Egyptian's food supply for the next 14 years. During that time Egypt had 7 years of plenty, followed by 7 years of famine.   Joseph stored up grain during the years of plenty and when the 7 years of famine hit the world, the world turned to Egypt for food.  During that time his own brothers, who sold him into slavery, came to Egypt to receive food.  Joseph in the end reveals himself to his brother, but not in a way that I would have expected:

“I am your brother Joseph, whom you once sold into Egypt. But now do not be distressed, and do not reproach yourselves for having sold me here. It was really for the sake of saving lives that God sent me here ahead of you.”


(Picture of Joseph revealing himself to his brothers)

In all that Joseph experienced, he still saw the Lord's hand in it.  From the evil of his brothers, to the loss of his freedom, to being falsely accused of a crime and forgotten in prison, Joseph remains faithful and trusts in the Lord's plan.  And yet, there is something even deeper being reveals in Joseph's story.  Joseph suffers tremendously, in a sense has his own passion, only to be raised to the right hand of Pharaoh, which the Egyptians believed to be a god.  It was there Joseph was called to save the world by feeding them grains.  This story of Joseph is preparing us to be able to receive the story of Christ.  Jesus, the true son of God, who in his own passion and death is raised to the right hand of God the Father, only to feed us with through grain of His own Body (and Blood)!

What does mean for us?  One to trust in God even through the most difficult and trying times, but secondly, if we look close enough in our own sufferings and brokenness, we will see the Lord revealing Himself to us in his own Passion, Death, and Resurrection.  Amen!

The Lord Working in the Ordinary

"If it were a prerogative of love for it to love the extraordinary, then God would, so to speak, be in a tight spot, since for him there is nothing extraordinary." ~ Kierkegaard

Last summer I had the opportunity to serve as a hospital chaplain.  I would receive a list of the patients on a particular floor, I would begin by first getting my paper work all lined up, and I would systematically go from room to room.  Nothing was extraordinary about the process, I streamlined my paperwork and my visits.  One day, as I was going through my list, I knocked on a patient door.  My introduction was similar and ordinary to all my other visits.  "Hello, my name is Michael and I am a chaplain here at the hospital would you like me to come in."  Many times before the patient would deny the visit request or others would welcome me in for a short visit; but this visit was different! The patient welcomed me with tears and was very nervous.  She recently visited her family practice doctor who had her directly admitted to the hospital.  An immediate surgery was requried and her anxiety and fear was coming to light.  She had prayed to God to send her someone and I walked in the door!  After a thirty minute conversation, we finished with prayer, and she said, "thank you for being an answer to my prayers!"

It was then, my modern skepticism kicked in.  I doubted her statement.  I counted that patient as part of my daily rounds and I wanted to dismiss the supernatural from this natural coincidence.  It wasn't until my own supervisor challenged me and asked me why I couldn't see God working in each one of my visits, including this last visit! 

This past Sunday, the Gospel was about Jesus entering his home town.  It was there Jesus was not accepted.  "A prophet is not without honor except in his native place" (Mk 6:4).  The people were quick to dismiss the supernatural just for the natural.  He leaves in the Gospel pointing to their lack of faith. 

In the Gospel story, I was the person with little faith in that hospital story.  I didn't see how God could work in the natural and ordinary!  In my own ordinary schedule, my own ordinary work, and in my own ordinary life with all its brokenness and weaknesses!  

It is in this context that the second reading from the Mass from St. Paul's became all the clearer, "I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses, in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me."

The Lord's work doesn't work in the extraordinary, but finds itself in the ordinary (see above Kierkegaard quote).  Jesus was born in a small town of Bethlehem, lived in a smaller town of Nazereth, and was raised as a Carpenter's son.  There is nothing extraordinary about that. Even more so, there is nothing extraordinary about the 12 disciples he chose as Apostles either: from fishermen to tax collectors.  What makes the story so extraordinary and supernatural is how the Lord loved us in the in the ordinary!

And it is that what I took away from the Gospel this past Sunday:  It is because of the Lord's love us in the ordinary that we become extraordinary!  Let us allow the Lord in to our schedule, work, and lives and see the extrodinary things that will come from His Love.

A picture from my Diaconate Ordination - 4 ordinary men preparing to receive the extraordinary love of God!

God Reveals Himself in Our Trials and Sufferings

It is sometimes a great mystery in how God reveals Himself to us, especially in our suffering and trials.  This was seen in today's 1st reading for Mass today: Genesis 22:1-19.  It is in this passage Abraham was tested by God.  Abraham was asked to sacrifice his only son.  The passage seems strange and leads to even deeper questions.  Does the Lord, our God desire human sacrifice?  A sacrifice that has found itself throughout many cultures and religions?  Yet, when we we read the story of Abraham and Isaac in the light of Christ, we actually see God revealing Himself to us.  God is revealing the story of Christ, the story of our Salvation to us!



Take the following from Genesis 22:1-19

1.  Abraham is called to Sacrifice His ONLY SON (verse 2)
2. WHOM HE LOVES (v. 2)
3. As and OFFERING (v.2)
4. In the Land of Moriah (v. 2) also known as the hills of Salem, 2 Chronicles 3:1)
5. Abraham riding in on a donkey (v. 3)
6. Isaac carries the wood of the sacrifice (v. 6)
7. In Hebrew Tradition - Isaac, a young adult able to carry the wood for the sacrifice up the mountain offers himself freely to his Father
8. After the Abraham is stopped and a ram is provided, Abraham says "On this mount of the Lord [the Lamb] SHALL BE provided" (Ji-reh) (v. 8,14)

Now let's see in the light of Jesus Christ!

What God did in the midst of Abraham's trial and suffering was reveal Himself and His plan to Abraham.  For God the Father, would send his Only Son (1), whom he loved (2), to lay his life down as an offering for the whole world (3).  Christ would ride a donkey into the land of Moriah, into Jerusalem (Ji-reh Salem) (4,5).  It was there Christ would carry the wood of the Cross, offering himself freely (6,7).  Christ has become the sacrificial Lamb provided on the mount of Calvary, in which Abraham prophesied. 

This revealing of God in suffering hasn't stopped, but continues today. It is in our own suffering and trials that the Lord continues to His love for us.  Maybe we just need to look closer at Christ on the Cross and see how He is uniting us closer to Himself!  What a beautiful mystery it is!