Not success, but faithfulness!

We had a particularly great opening prayer for Mass this weekend, the 3rd Sunday of Lent.  You may not get excited about opening prayers, (traditionally called the "Collect"), but this is the bread and butter for a priest!  And, since this is the first year I'm the one leading the praying of them, I'm hearing them in more detail than in the past (which is to say, I'm not sure I really focused on them or that they sunk in before I had them right in front of me.)

Father, you have taught us to overcome our sins 
by prayer, fasting and works of mercy.  
When we are discouraged by our weakness, 
give us confidence in your love.  
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, 
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, 
one God, for ever and ever.

Certainly this is where many of us are at... we made certain commitments to God and ourselves for Lent, and already we have struggled. Even if we've kept those promises, those small penances, those small commitments, it's been difficult.  They put before us our own inconstancy and weakness.  This is as it should be.  Lent is not a time for spiritual body-building.  God isn't calling us to be spiritual Hulk Hogans or MacGyvers.  He does want us to be strong and resourceful, but in Him, not in ourselves.

I have a poster I love which shows JPII and Mother Teresa... two of the brightest lights of the last dark century so full of lies and suffering and violence.  Asked if she got discouraged by the many obstacles she faced, she replied “No, God doesn't call me to be successful; God calls me to be faithful.”

 

I didn't intend to write a homily... if you're in the midst of struggles, if you're having a hard time... that doesn't keep you from God.  If it looks like your own brokenness and the brokenness around you isn't getting fixed anytime soon, that doesn't necessarily keep you from God.  God walks with us through difficulty.  We gaze upon the crucified Christ, not because we've forgotten that He rose, but because we need to be constantly reminded how He saved us.  In HIM, all things are possible.  In HIM, our perseverance in the face of difficulty leads to eternal glory.