Eighth Sunday of Ordinary Time
A Reflection by Rev. Fr. Robert Johnnene OFD
Mission Sts. Sergius & Bacchus/Franciscans of Divine Mercy
www.missionstsergius.org
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Divine_Mercy_Franciscans

“Jesus said, ‘No one can be the slave of two masters: he will either hate the first and love the second, or treat the first with respect and the second with scorn. You cannot be the slave both of God and of money. ‘That is why I am telling you not to worry about your life and what you are to eat, or about your body and how you are to clothe it. Surely, life means more than food, and the body more than clothing! Look at the birds in the sky. They do not sow or reap or gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are we not worth much more than they are? Can any of you, for all his worrying, add one single cubit to his span of life? And why worry about clothing? Think of the flowers growing in the fields; they never have to work or spin; yet I assure you that not even Solomon in all his regalia was robed like one of these. Now if that is how God clothes the grass in the field which is there today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, will he not much more look after you, you men of little faith? So do not worry; do not say, “What are we to eat? What are we to drink? How are we to be clothed?” It is the pagans who set their hearts on all these things. Your heavenly Father knows you need them all. Set your hearts on his kingdom first, and on his righteousness, and all these other things will be given you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow: tomorrow will take care of itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6: 24-34)

The reading for this Sunday is extremely clear and one that seems to have been lost on many who claim to be followers of Christ.
The message I perceive from this reading is that we need to focus our concerns on how well we are doing in acting in a manner that is pleasing to Almighty God.We need to stop worrying about things and place our complete trust in God.
In our current society many people place far more importance on what they will wear, what kind of car they should drive to impress others, and seem to care little for the needs of the poor, sick, elderly and more on their own self interests.
Yes!, we do have to make sure that our families are taken care of and are comfortable but we do not have to have those flat screen TV’s, the latest fashion clothes and houses large enough to accommodate a family of 15.
St. Francis gave up a life of luxury to live simply and to care for the downtrodden, poor , sick and outcasts of his time based on this Gospel passage.
I have been accused of being an extreme liberal because of my concerns for others quality of life. I have had my recent commentary for Memorial day challenged because I spoke of how our country, which was founded on the principal of equality for all, has lost it’s focus.
I am aware that my messages are not popular and often might make people uncomfortable because they are not candy coated but challenge us to live our lives not for the here and now, but for our eternal life with Almighty God.
To do that we have to put into action in our daily lives those qualities that Christ indicated were the way to live.In today’s Gospel Christ tells us; “Your heavenly Father knows you need them all. Set your hearts on his kingdom first, and on his righteousness, and all these other things will be given you as well. So do not worry about tomorrow: tomorrow will take care of itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
Recently I, my family, this ministry, Senator Kennedy and many others have been given major challenges which they have no control over like the difficulties caused by the spiraling costs of all things especially illness, gas, food, and health care.
In all these concerns I place my trust in God and that He will bring us trough it according to His plan for us and especially for this ministry.
I take the position that you worry about the things you have control over and do what you have too improve them and place in God’s hands the things He can control.
Trust in God and He will take care of you just as He cares for the all of His creation as the Gospel today relates. I believe, that if more people would turn to God seeking answers to the chaos the world seems to be in, that God will hear our cry for help and bring about change.
We need to place God first every moment of every day by living according to Christ’s teaching in all the things we do. In some areas churches are being closed because of a lack of people attending while other churches that cater to selected passages of scripture that appeal to select segments of society and practice discrimination and bigotry because of their race are growing.
This is not what Christ taught. Every person on this earth is a child of God and as such needs to be treated with dignity and respect.
Evil needs to be fought and compassion needs to be practiced. If we “LOVE ONE ANOTHER AS CHRIST LOVES US” we cannot do so with hatred or bigotry.
In 1 Corinthians 13 Paul states, “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres….And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
If we are to love like Christ loved, we have to care for others, place our hope and trust in God, not seek our own glory and self edification and luxury but show compassion, forgiveness, and generosity and most of all give to God the worship, honor, glory and praise He deserves every day of our earthly life.
We need to make God our master and be a slave to Him. We cannot cater to the tools of Satan; Pride, Wrath, Envy, Greed, Lust, Gluttony, sloth which have been called THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. Today, these sins are reflected in "environmental pollution, genetic manipulation, obscene wealth, infliction of poverty, drug trafficking, morally debatable experiments, and violation of the fundamental rights of human nature.
We need to practice; Charity, Kindness, Patience, Humility, Temperance, diligence and Chastity which is using the gift of sex in a loving relationship and not for personal self gratification.
The problems of our world and country can be solved but we need to make God and His rules take first place.
We can start the process by doing that in our own personal life.
May God grant unto us the courage, strength and grace to make the changes necessary. AMEN