Marking Moments | Fr. Chad E. JarnaginLuke 12:32-40 (ESV)32 “Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your possessions, and give to the needy. Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys. 34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.You Must Be Ready35 “Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning, 36 and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks.37 Blessed are those servants whom the master finds awake when he comes. Truly, I say to you, he will dress himself for service and have them recline at table, and he will come and serve them. 38 If he comes in the second watch, or in the third, and finds them awake, blessed are those servants! 39 But know this, that if the master of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have left his house to be broken into. 40 You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.”I would encourage us to meditate on this gospel this week from time to time. There is a lot here.Jesus begins with “fear not, little flock... where your treasure is, there your heart will be.”In my twenties/thirties, I had a friend that was just different than everyone else. His wardrobe consisted of 3 pairs of jeans and 5 green t-shirts and 1 white button-down. He was attempting to live a minimalistic life... He was one of the most content people I’ve ever known: In a sense, selling what he owned and giving it away.You Must Be Ready35 “Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning, 36 and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks.Verse 40 says “You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” This has been abused in many circles: stoking anxiety and urgency for a conversion experience. The urgency shouldn’t be one of conversion, but of awareness & awakeness... There is a peacefulness about not knowing when preparations have been made.Let’s assess our parish environment for a moment: We value: peace... meaningful moments... sacramental moments and rites. We bless those going back to school. Pausing and marking / devoting a moment... after Eucharist this week, we went to the river to baptize. Devoting / sealing with Christ... “Fear not, little flock... where are treasure is, there our hearts will be”. Our weekly / daily practices can reveal where are hearts are. This story is not one to cause anxiety. It is a gentle encouragement to do the simple work of preparation. Like my friend who began living out minimalism, which prepared him to have less and travel at a moment’s notice... his capacity for the unexpected eventually become more and more open.Maybe this idea of Christ’s return helps us to be open to Christ’s presence when & where we least expect it. This prepares us for whatever will eventually occur... When this happens; when, not if, we can have more capacity for whatever comes... for God is with us.Again, for Christ said: “Fear not, little flock... where your treasure is, there your heart will be.”
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