WHAT IN THE WORLD WAS I THINKING?

 We can probably all remember as a child doing something that was really stupid.  Most of the time it occurred as part of a group rather than just by ourselves.  One of our friends would dare us to do something that was just silly and sometimes even dangerous.  Sometimes it may have even been a dare to do something that we knew was wrong.  When our Mother found out about it her response was often “What in the world were you thinking?”  “Were you out of your mind?”  “You know better than that!”

Life is full of choices.  Some choices we make purely on our own and some are a result of peer or group pressure.  In our choices we generally like to take credit for the good choices and put the blame on others for the bad choices.  Remember the Flip Wilson show and two of his classic lines: “The devil made me do it!” and “Here come the judge!”

There is a tendency for us to often see life simply as a bitter struggle between two powers – the power of evil trying to get us to do the wrong things, and the power of our own efforts and determination to fend off those temptations and to secure the things we want in life.  This can seem pretty scary and at times a bit overwhelming.  It seems like the deck may be stacked against us and that it is just too hard to avoid all the temptations.  Do we even stand a chance?”

If it was simply up to us we would all be doomed!  In today’s Gospel we heard a story that shows the scope of God’s power – a power which knows no bounds.  Jesus orders an unclean spirit to come out of a man.  The man is once again made whole.  God is once again victorious.

This is the same power that empowered Moses to lead his people out of slavery in Egypt.  This is the same power that empowered David and Solomon to serve as King of the Hebrew people.  It is the same power that filled the prophets like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Amos, and Hosea with wisdom and courage.  This is the same power that overshadowed young Mary and enabled her to say yes to being the Mother of the Messiah.  It is the same power that enabled Joseph to take Mary as his wife in spite of his doubts and misgivings.  It is the same power that raised Jesus from the dead and unleashed his Spirit on all creation.  That’s the power we are talking about.  That’s the power that has no rival.  That’s the power which can be nothing but victorious.

In our first reading we heard God tell Moses that I will raise up for my people a prophet like you and I will put my words into his mouth.  Think for a moment of all the prophets God has sent to us through the centuries to bring us a message of hope in the midst of darkness and suffering:  Stephen stoned to death as he spoke for God.   Perpetua and Felicity and so many others witnessing with their lives to Christ.   St. Francis of Assisi witnessing to the presence of God in all of creation.  Thomas Becket witnessing to the people of England in the 12^th century.  Joan of Arc who spoke for God to the people of the 15^th Century.   Martin de Porres caring for people of all races in South America.  Dietrich Bonehoeffer, a German Lutheran theologian, speaking out against the Third Reich in the 1940’s.  Teilhard de Chardin, a French Jesuit Priest, who preached Christ as the center of the creative process.  Ghandi who identified with the poor of the world and the untouchables of his native India.  Martin Luther King Jr. and his efforts for peace and civil rights.  Archbishop Oscar Romero and the poor of central America.

God continues to raise prophets in our day to challenge and encourage us to place our trust and hope in Him.  Let us follow the lead of so many great men and women who have gone before us speaking the word and the truth of God because they have listened to the voice of God in their lives to challenge and over come the voices of evil and defeat.  Let us speak God’s word clearly and courageously.  The one who teaches with authority says come to me and I will give you the power and all that you need to be my disciples.  So let us not find ourselves wondering and asking “What was I thinking?”  Let us pause and say: “Speak Lord, your servant is listening.”

Fr. Carroll Mizicko, OFM