"The world offers you comfort. But, you were not made for comfort, you were made for greatness" (Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI - follow this link for more details about the origin of this quote: https://icscatholicedu.blogspot.com/2020/03/greatness.html).
I love the grittiness of this quote. I love how it echoes the call of the apostles. I love how it draws us out of timidity and into adventure. I love believing that through hard work I can play a part - my part - in God's story.
I love believing that I can go down in HIS-story.
Today's Gospel, the story of the healing of the paralytic (Luke 5:18-20), is one of my favorites. It is a story of friendship, ingenuity, determination and faith.
And some men brought on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed;
they were trying to bring him in and set him in his presence.
But not finding a way to bring him in because of the crowd,
they went up on the roof
and lowered him on the stretcher through the tiles
into the middle in front of Jesus.
When Jesus saw their faith, he said,
“As for you, your sins are forgiven.”
Some highlights:
- a group of people worked together
- they encountered what was most likely a very discouraging situation (seeing the house filled with and surrounded by people)
- they did not give up
- they creatively found a solution
- they worked hard (imagine climbing on top of a house and lifting up someone who couldn't move / move well)
- they believed that Jesus would honor their efforts and faith in His almighty power
Imagine if we approached life with a similar philosophy.
Let us work together in intentional community. Allow the synergy between and among people to spur us to new levels of excellence. There is immense strength in being united in a common mission.
Let us work together in intentional community. Allow the synergy between and among people to spur us to new levels of excellence. There is immense strength in being united in a common mission.
Let us work hard. Resilience is the ability to bounce back quickly from setbacks. Studies show that traits of resilient people include: they accept that life is difficult, they believe that life has meaning even in those moments when meaning is not apparent, and they choose to act even if the situation seems hopeless. Let us, like this group of friends, have unwavering faith and persistence.
Let us creatively seek out solutions to seemingly impossible problems. When the doors are blocked try breaking through the roof.
Let us believe that Jesus will honor our efforts to serve Him and each other. Let us lift one another up and bring each other to the feet of Jesus and let Him transform us and our lives into something AMAZING.
Let us find a way.
Let us find the Way.
Let us find a way.
Let us find the Way.
