Homily for Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time - August 7, 2016

Homily for Nineteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time

August 7, 2016

The Faith of Abraham

            Are God’s promises trustworthy?

            This question is one that all of us have to wrestle with. He promises us eternal life if we follow Him, He promises us abundant joy, He promises that He will never leave us, no matter how tough it gets…but so often, when we’re tempted, we forget about the promise of Heaven. When we’re suffering, we doubt the promise of His presence. Are His promises trustworthy?

On every page of Scripture, one fundamental question is asked: DO YOU TRUST GOD? From the time that our first parents decided that they trusted themselves more than God and disobeyed Him, most of the people throughout salvation history have said, No, God cannot be trusted. I’m going to take matters into my own hands.

            Abraham had to wrestle with the same question – only to an extreme degree. God promised some amazing things to him – children as numerous as the stars, the entire land of Israel, and that his name would be a blessing. God begins to fulfill these promises, finally giving Abraham a son, Isaac, despite the patriarch’s advanced age and the fact that his wife was barren.

            But then…God asked him to sacrifice his son. This is one of the toughest passages in Scripture, when God asks Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. Does God really want human sacrifice? Of course not – God wanted to see how far Abraham was willing to trust the promises of God. God had promised him descendants…then asked him to offer back his only son? Could Abraham still trust a God who would ask such a thing of him? Surely Abraham must’ve been thinking, God, how could you? You promised that I would be the father of nations. I love Isaac, my only son…

            But when push came to shove, Abraham answered, God, I don’t know how You’re going to come through, but I trust that You will. Our second reading says that Abraham even believed that God would somehow raise his son back to life – that is amazing trust! He offered back his only son…as a symbol of what God Himself would do, when God would sacrifice His only Son, Jesus Christ, upon the wood of the Cross for our salvation. Abraham’s trust was rewarded – not only did he receive his son back, he also received abundant blessings from the Lord.

            That same question is being asked of you and I – Do you trust God? Do you trust that He is real, that He is with you, that Heaven is real, that He is the only One worth pursuing? Look back over your own life and see how God has been faithful to you all along – the many gifts He has given you, the struggles He has brought you through…all of this should motivate us to trust Him with radical abandon. He is a good Father, and if He promises something, He will do it.

            A lot of us struggle to trust God, though, so we try to control our own lives. Instead of asking God where He would like us to go to college or where to work, we try to do it all by ourselves. Instead of letting God decide the size of our families and how many kids we have, we plan it out and try to control it. When we are faced with suffering, a lot of us immediately rush to find a way out (sometimes unhealthy or sinful), instead of perhaps asking where God is moving in all of this.

            This trust requires a whole new way of looking at the world. We have to give up control and instead allow God, His Word and His Church’s teachings to be in control. I’ve heard of people having Frank Sinatra’s song, “My Way” sung at their funerals – you know, the one that sings, “I did it my way.” I’m pretty sure we should be doing it His way instead!

            In the 1940s there was a young nun who was serving as a headmistress at a wealthy Catholic girls’ school. She was very happy, loving God, serving the students, and doing what she enjoyed. But on a train trip to her annual retreat, she heard God’s voice crystal clear: leave the school, go out into the streets, and serve the poorest of the poor. This young nun had no idea how to do that – she wasn’t a social worker and didn’t have the slightest clue what to do. But she obeyed God, with radical abandonment and trust. After she had received permission from her superiors, she left the school and began to wander the streets, teaching poor children and caring for people who were literally dying in the gutters. She trusted God, and in less than a month, Mother Teresa will become Saint Mother Teresa, as her canonization is on September 4 of this year.

            Do not seek to control your own life – you will drive yourself insane. Rather, surrender control of your life to God, seeking Him in His Word and conforming your life to the Church’s teachings. We can trust God because He is a good Father, Who is always faithful to His promises.