Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time - July 12, 2015

Homily for July 12, 2015

Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jesus Is Enough

 

            I went to seminary with a man named Chase Hilgenbrinck. Although he’s not a household name, he certainly had a taste of fame and fortune. He was an incredible soccer star growing up in Indiana, so much so that he was a starter at Clemson University, a Division-1 School. Out of college, he signed almost immediately with a professional soccer team in Chile, in hopes of making it big.

            And make it big, he did! He played three years in Chile, becoming a superstar and even getting his own cover of the Chilean version of Sports Illustrated. But during his time in Chile, he found himself quite lonely – he struggled to learn the language, and didn’t fit in with the culture. So he ended up spending a lot of time praying, reflecting, and visiting churches, where he began to hear God’s small voice calling him to leave it all.

            But his journey wasn’t done yet. He managed to sign with an American Major Leage Soccer team, the New England Revolution. But something didn’t feel right. He had everything a man could want – professional athlete, tons of money, a girlfriend…but he knew that what was missing was Christ. So, at the height of his career, he retired from major league soccer and entered the seminary, and now he is Fr. Chase Hilgenbrinck, a priest of the diocese of Rockford, IL.

            Chase discovered that Jesus is enough. Our deepest happiness, our only true fulfillment, our ultimate destiny is Him. That is why Jesus tells His Apostles to take nothing with them on the journey – He needs to teach them that He alone is their happiness. That’s why He tells the Apostles to preach about repentance – He needs to teach us that He alone is our happiness.

            Not our possessions, not our sins, not our talents, not our families – these things can tide us over for a time, but can never satisfy. Jesus is enough. Just this past week I was speaking with an elderly man who, while not rich, has a comfortable amount of money – but he was lamenting to me about the poor financial choices he made. He was saying, “Oh, if only I had bought stock! If only I had invested more! I could have been much richer!” I thought to myself, how sad! How sad that this man, who has more than enough and should be filled with gratitude, is instead filled with regret for not having more money!

            Imagine, for a moment, that you were given a credit card with – instead of money -  time and personal energy on it. You were told to use it to find deep joy. What would you spend that time and energy on? Watching TV? Petty family drama? Shopping for new shoes? At the end of the day, would any of that bring you deep joy? Probably not, and it would be a waste of your time and energy.

            The reality is, all of us have a limited number of hours in the day, and a limited amount of energy before we get tired. Every choice we make is an attempt to be happy. I’m going to make the claim that until we have a deep relationship with Jesus Christ, we will never find true happiness. The stuff we do on a daily basis might take away our boredom for a while, but it won’t grant us deep inner peace unless we have Jesus, because Jesus is enough.

            So then how do we have a deep relationship with Jesus? Remember that credit card with the time and energy on it – that is how we have a deep relationship with Jesus. We spend time with Him in reading His word, we spend our energy on growing every day in holiness. We often say, “Oh, I don’t have time to have a personal friendship with Jesus.” But what else are you spending your time and energy on – work? School? Relaxing? Those are good things, but does that bring you the deep happiness of having a friendship with Jesus?

            Jesus sent the Apostles out without anything because He is everything. I pray that we may refocus our lives on the reality that Jesus is enough.