Author: admin

How many of us have heard Bruce Springsteen’s famous song, “Everybody’s got a hungry heart?”

Millions can sing along, because we know it’s true. Everybody’s got a hungry heart.

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But not everybody knows how to satisfy it.

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This is why the crowds are following Jesus in today’s Gospel – like all of us, they’re hungry. And they’re wondering if he can satisfy them.

Fully aware of their desires, he says, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst” (John 6:35).

Jesus promises the crowds – and all of us gathered here this morning – that if we listen to his teachings and follow his example, then we will be satisfied.

But why is that? How can Jesus satisfy us?

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Because he is love – and that’s what we all hunger for in the end, love.

As Saint Paul says, “If I do not have love…I am nothing…. I am a resounding gong or a clashing symbol” (1 Corinthians 13: 1-2).

Without love we will be forever hungry.

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This is the point that Paul’s making in our second reading.

He’s writing to a group of newly converted Christians, urging them to remember the teachings of Jesus – to remember how to love – instead of retreating to their former ways of life, when they indulged in selfish and sinful behavior.

That will not satisfy them – or us – in the end.

“Put away the old self of your former way of life,” Paul says. “Be renewed in the spirit of your minds and put on the new self” (Ephesians 4: 22-24).

In a word, put on love.

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The Native Americans have an interesting way of describing this tension between our “old self” and our “new self.”

They say there’s a battle happening inside all of us between two wolves. One wolf is evil. It feeds on the “old self,” on sinful desires such as lust, greed, anger, jealousy, pride, and selfishness.

The other wolf is good. It feeds on the “new self”, on healthy desires such as forgiveness, honesty, generosity, patience, and kindness.

We cannot feed both wolves; only one will win. The question is, “Which one is it?”

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The one we feed.

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Which wolf am I feeding?

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Ultimately, that’s a question we answer in our daily lives; every decision we make feeds one of those two wolves.

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Everybody’s got a hungry heart.

And Jesus tells us how to satisfy it. We must feed that good wolf within us by loving our neighbor and our God without counting the cost. It’s the only way we will ever be satisfied.

Still the choice is ours.

Which wolf will you feed?

 

 

The Poisonwood Bible.

It’s a strange title, isn’t it? The Poisonwood Bible.

It’s a story about a family from my home state of Georgia. The father, Nathan, is a Baptist minister whose community has decided he will serve as a missionary in central Africa.

And like the disciples in today’s Gospel, his church believes in the importance of not ministering alone; so Nathan is being sent with his entire family.

Before they go, their friends warn them that there’s a weight limit at the airport; each person can only bring forty-four pounds of luggage.

So the four daughters, ages 5 to 16, rush to their rooms and start putting on as much of their clothes as possible – several pairs of socks, six dresses each, cake mix buckled around their waists, all covered by thick outer coats.

Even so, when they arrive at the airport, the family is a total of sixty-one pounds over weight! Slightly embarrassed, they begin digging through their suitcases, deciding what items are essential versus what can be left behind.

This gesture of removing items from their suitcase points to something deeper… something they – and maybe we –all  need to do.

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In the Gospel, Jesus sends the Apostles out on their first missionary journey. And they are instructed to take nothing with them – no food, no cash, no suitcase. Not even a change of clothes.

All they have is the Word of God.

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Why does Jesus insist on such extreme poverty?

First and foremost, it lends credibility to their message. The Apostles are driving out demons and curing the sick. And they’re doing it all for free, proving they’re not looking to get rich; they’re looking to save souls.

They don’t want people’s money; they want them to believe.

Secondly, Jesus wants the Apostles themselves to grow in trust. Not knowing where their next meal will come from or who will shelter them that night tests their faith; it challenges them to believe that God will provide for their every need.

And he does – day after day – through the hands of strangers or newly converted Christians. Thus the Apostles see our faith at work; when they’re in need, someone’s there to help.

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“Jesus instructed them to take nothing for the journey.”

Though we’re not missionaries like the Apostles – or even the Price family in The Poisonwood Bible– the Gospel still challenges us to consider what things we need to leave behind.

On the surface, we may have some extra clothes or food that we can donate. And while that’s certainly important, let’s dig a little deeper.

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What weighs me down?

Am I carrying a grudge that I’ve nursed for too long? Am I refusing to forgive those who’ve hurt me?

Am I carrying the weight of a sin that never seems to go away? Do I struggle to trust God or worry about my future?

What do I need to get rid of?

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“Jesus instructed them to take nothing for the journey.”

No food, no cash, no suitcase. Not even a change of clothes. All they had was the Word of God – and the belief that their every need would be provided for.

In a similar way, there may be things we need to let go of – thoughts, feelings, or sins that weigh us down.

Jesus challenges us to let them go today. We will only be happier if we do.

As he himself says, “Come to me all you who are heavy burdened and I will give you rest, for my yoke is easy and my burden light” (Matthew 11:28).

Have you ever walked with a splinter in your foot?

It’s amazing how something so small and seemingly insignificant can cause so much pain! That tiny splinter can make you walk with a terrible limp until it’s finally removed.

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This idea of walking with a limp, or carrying a painful burden, is what Saint Paul is referring to in our second reading. “A thorn in the flesh was given to me,” he says, “an angel of Satan, to beat me from becoming too elated” (2 Cor. 12:7).

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Saint Paul is in the midst of his ministry, travelling the world and building up new Christian communities.

And while he’s experiencing the incredible joy of knowing the Lord and bringing thousands of people to Jesus, he’s discovered that there are a handful of false preachers following in his footsteps, preaching a different message to these newly converted towns, causing confusion about who Jesus is.

Is he really God or just a humble carpenter from Nazareth?

This is what causes Saint Paul such pain, knowing that some of these first Christians are being misguided and losing their faith. It’s like a “thorn in his flesh,” or a splinter in his foot.

But he knows that God will not allow him to use this as a reason to give up. Rather, he must remind these communities of the Truth and then move on to other cities and preach the Good News to anyone who will listen.

It’s a lesson that he learned straight from Jesus.

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By this point in the Gospel, Jesus has already healed people with diseases, cast out demons, and even raised a 12-year old girl from the dead. And now he returns home to visit his family and friends. Yet he’s not welcomed as a “hometown hero” like we might expect.

Rather, his identity is questioned by those closest to him… “Where did this man get all this?” they say.“What kind of wisdom has been given him? … Is he not the carpenter, the son of Mary?” (Mark 6:3).

Saddened by their lack of faith, Jesus experiences a painful thorn in his flesh… unbelief. More than anything else, that is what causes him anguish.

What brings him consolation, on the other hand, are those who approach him with faith, believing that he has the ability to heal, to save, to change lives. These are the ones who experience his power.

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Can’t we see something of our own story in this? Like Jesus and Paul, many of us have experienced frustrations or disappointments in life that can feel like “thorns in our flesh,” or splinters in our feet.

What are these thorns for me? What burdens me or weighs me down?

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Perhaps it’s the heaviness of finances – of making ends meet, the stress of raising a family, the anguish of losing a loved one unexpectedly, or the weight of the future – not knowing what will happen as we move into high school, college, start a new career… or even as we age.

Whatever our thorns may be, Paul reminds us that we must press on in faith, knowing that the Lord is with us. As Jesus himself says, “Come to me, all you who are heavy burdened and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

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Perhaps it’s equally as important to remember this: just as a tiny splinter can cause someone irritation, so a small act of kindness can bring someone joy.

Oftentimes we don’t know the burdens that other people are carrying. But we can brighten their day by saying a kind word, uttering a prayer, posting a positive message on Facebook, or listening to them with sincerity.

So how might we support someone else, or bring them joy this week?

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As we move ahead this Sunday morning, may we repeat together those words of Saint Paul, “Lord, your grace is enough for us.”