Dealing with the people in our lives – Br. Jack Crowley
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
We don’t always get to choose the people in our lives. Classmates, coworkers, bosses, neighbors…most of these people just kind of show up without our say so. We do not choose these people, yet they form a huge part of our lives.
In our Gospel today, we heard the beautiful story of Jesus calling twelve of his followers up to a mountaintop to appoint them as apostles. It’s one of my favorite images of the apostles. These twelve followers of Jesus – some of them are related by blood, some of them who had known each other for a while, and some of them who were strangers until they started following Jesus, all making their way up that mountain together. I try to imagine how they must have felt in that moment, that mixture of excitement and anxiety knowing that their mission was about to begin.
I think it is fair to say that the Apostles were successful in their mission. These twelve human beings learned to live, work, and pray together while spreading the good news. Here we are about two thousand years later, a product of their mission, and still learning how to live, work, and pray together, but now with our eight billion fellow human beings.
The Apostles did not all choose one another, yet for the most part, they made it work. At every stage of our life, we will be continually confronted by a similar challenge. The people we will deal with will not always be those we would have chosen to deal with. This is true in the business office, the Divine Office, and the Oval Office.
We will continually be affected by the actions of other people and we will continually be confronted by circumstances beyond our control. We will feel powerless over so many things, but that does not mean all hope is lost. We have the God given gift of free will. We have the ability to choose our response to the turmoil of life. We have the power to try our best to communicate with one another and navigate our way through the messes we inherit. We have one another and our shared experiences.
Certainly these times are rough and fear is in the air. We must do our best to keep breathing. These times are not beyond the salvation of God. We continue our apostolic mission one day at a time.
We also have God. That’s good. It’s easy to lose sight of God in our hikes up and down the mountain of life. Above all else, we must take time, or at least take a time out, to remember why it is we are here, to serve God. Amen.
Love your sense of humor!
Even in our families. That’s where we start. If we can’t cooperate with our brother by birth, how are we to work with our brothers in the world?
Thank you, Br, Jack. Very important words for our times.
Thank you for this very timely word. It has spoken powerfully to me this morning. I’ve been battling some very difficult family issues and not knowing what to do. I have also been listening to a few other friend’s struggles and praying for them. It’s so easy to say to someone else “God is in charge, Don’t worry. Pray for His will to be done in each situation you are facing.” BUT not so easy to do it yourself.!!! This was very helpful for me this morning . Thank you again.
Dear Jack
Thank you for reminding me that the stranger only remains a stranger when we see them as part of the mess we are in and not as one climbing the mountain with us to God. We do need to do our best to communicate and to connect with those we see on the other side of our common concerns to give the world our best. Maybe if we get to know the stranger they can help us navigate our fears and to climb the mountain
Amen. Thank you.