Word to the Wise
Thursday, September 21, 2006 - ST. MATTHEW (Apostle and Evangelist)
[Ephesians 4:1-7, 11-13 and Matthew 9:9-13]As Jesus passed by, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post. He said to him, "Follow me." And he got up and followed him. I, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received.....
Most of us don't suddenly meet Jesus at work and leave the job to "follow" him. Most Catholics actually receive their "call" in the arms of their parents or godparents at baptism! We don't give it a second thought! In fact, we may not even give it a FIRST thought, though by the time of Confirmation we will have participated in enough "religious education" that the question may have occurred to us, "Why am I doing this?" We receive the Sacrament of Baptism just once. That's when the "call" occurs. Perhaps we don't hear it personally till later on, but we are each given a measure of years to "live in a manner worthy of the call" we have received. We are given various gifts to use for the good of the community to which we belong. The Letter to the Ephesians urges us to act "with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace....!" The Lord says: "Go and learn the meaning of the words, I desire mercy, not sacrifice. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners." Living "the call" takes a lifetime. We fall down and get up many times. Jesus did not come to save perfectionists (except from themselves, maybe!), but the imperfect, whom he calls to "follow him." We just follow in our imperfections and trust that the Lord will accomplish great things with our all too imperfect cooperation! The apostles were great examples of this, so we're in good company! AMEN
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