Word to the Wise
Tuesday, November 12, 2013 - Tuesday in the 32th Week in Ordinary Time
[Wis 2:23—3:9 and Luke 17:7-10]Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded? So should it be with you. When you have done all you have been commanded, say, "We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do."
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2013 ST. JOSAPHAT, bishop and martyr
It may seem strange when one thinks about it, but it is all too common. We can find ourselves thinking, "God owes me!" "I've done so much for the church and humanity that God is in my debt!" I have told the story here before, but it bears repeating. A lady came to me one time with an unusual spiritual problem. She had a large stack of devotional cards each of which promised certain benefits to the one who performed that particular devotion. She was determined to build up her spiritual retirement account so that she wouldn't have to go to purgatory! Her problem consisted in the fact that there wasn't enough time in her day to do all the devotions. She was getting exhausted and afraid she would lose all her "benefits!" She wanted to keep God "in debt" to her so that God would have no choice but to admit her immediately to heaven upon her death!
This is admittedly an unusual story, but it illustrates a common problem among Christians. God's covenant with the faithful is not a contract between equal parties! It is a relationship that calls for fidelity on our part, because we are the ones who are prone to being unfaithful! God does promise rewards for that fidelity, but God's generosity is not controlled by human expectations. The story of the laborers in the vineyard is an example of that. [Matt. 20] Today's image of the servant who thinks the master should wait on him when he [the servant] comes in from the field should remind us that we are God's servants, and not God's creditors! AMEN