Word to the Wise
Monday, June 10, 2013 - Monday in the 10th Week in Ordinary Time
[2 Cor 1:1-7 and Matt 5:1-12]Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all encouragement, who encourages us in our every affliction, so that we may be able to encourage those who are in any affliction with the encouragement with which we ourselves are encouraged by God. [2 Cor.]
These words from St. Paul are familiar to me because I have read them at the beginning of many a funeral! Certainly they are appropriate in a time of personal loss like that of a loved one, but we don't have to wait till someone dies to think of what St. Paul is telling us. He is telling us that we have a gift from God that is meant for others. It is the gift of encouragement in our own challenges and trials that can "overflow" in encouragement to those who are in affliction.
Encouragement is an important gift. It can be part of the response we give in times of loss, but it can also be part of our response to a friend who may be considering a task but feels inadequate to it or has never thought of a possibility. Many of the vocations to our Order have come about because a friend encouraged a young man or woman to consider religious life. In my years as a campus minister, when I saw a particularly talented student, I would, at the right moment, call attention to the talent and have said, "You are really good at...., have you ever considered doing......!" If they choose to try it, encouragement becomes even more important!
St. Paul is trying to encourage the church at Corinth, into which he had poured much of his own missionary life. We have our own "church" wherever we are and there will be no lack of those who are in need of the encouragement we have received from God. Share it generously! It can make a big difference! AMEN