GREATLY HAVE YOU ENRICHED IT
Our belief in
God's actions among us should motivate us to be faithful. Our experience of His
love should inspire us to be a generous and loving people.
God-lovers
have laid their lives on the line for what they believe. The prophet Elijah put
it all on the line, promising things only God could deliver. During a long
drought, he tells the king that he hears the sound of heavy rains falling. But
what he surely hears is his own heart beating hard and fast, hoping the rain
clouds are really on their way! At first there's nothing, but Elijah remains
firm. We, too, need to believe in the God of the "seen and unseen,"
as we pray in our Creed.
In
our Responsorial Psalm we acclaim, "You have visited the land and watered
it; greatly have You enriched it. God's watercourses are filled; You have
prepared the grain" (Ps. 65: 10). We rejoice in the rain because it makes
the earth fertile, the fields green, and the air clean and fresh. Then we have
a guarantee of the fruits of the earth for the needs of all and it renews the
farmer's faith that our heavenly Father will keep His Word providing us with
food as well as care for the animals. All this in His Providence!
We
have signs of God's power around us. All the forces of nature operate, not by
accident, but by the wonderful design of God. It is He Who maintains the
marvelous balance of nature by which we survive, and Who keeps constant the
laws of the universe upon which we depend. God uses His almighty power out of
love for us.
Our
belief in God's actions among us should motivate us to be faithful. Our
experience of His love should inspire us to be a generous and loving people. As
today's Gospel acclamation verse reminds us, Jesus is our model. "I give
you a new commandment: Love one another; even as I have loved you" (Jn.
13: 34). We are called to love each other even as He has loved us!
May
our hearts be open to forgive without counting the cost. Then, greatly have we
enriched it. Not just the land, but all of life!