23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time - Wisdom in the Cross

http://usccb.org/bible/readings/090813.cfm

Quick recap:
1st Reading - Wisdom - humans are easily distracted and unable to grow in wisdom unless it is given by God.
Psalm 90 - Trusting God to always be present and recognizing God's wisdom
2nd Reading - Philemon - welcoming others as family
Gospel - Luke 14 - There is a price to pay when you say YES to Jesus.  We are not to be discouraged from becoming disciples, but realize that there is a cost.

So, this week's Gospel seems a little odd.  We are told to 'hate'?!  Now, remember, that's just a first glance response.  We know Jesus is love, so there's got to be more to it.

Well, the theme of wisdom is fairly predominant.  The first reading reminds us that wisdom is a gift from God.  As one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, it is something we overlook.  Maybe we give ourselves credit for being smart, or we neglect to recognize it as a gift from God.  The psalm highlights God's wisdom and contrasts that with human action.  We begin to see our lives as a fleeting moment, owed completely to God.  It is God who directs our paths and our very being.  I had trouble seeing the connections with the 2nd reading.  So my take-away is the wisdom of relationships.  We must connect with those around us to create the Kingdom of Heaven right here and now.

Now, the Gospel starts out with a very blatant statement - hating family.  But, immediately following that was a statement about carrying our own cross in order to be a disciple.  So, consider the first line to be a realistic warning.  We cannot know the size of our crosses, but we must expect that we will have many crosses during our life.  Jesus is asking for a complete self-giving.  We can't give just an hour a week.  Being His disciple costs more.  So, we need to be aware of the cost.

One of the former pastors of my parish had a favorite line he used in wedding homilies, "If the bride and groom knew what the future held, they'd be headed for the exits in different directions!"  We don't know what the future holds, and we have to trust.  But saying 'Yes' isn't a halfway calling.  There is always room for growth and deeper relationship for God, but we must remain faithful, no matter the cross we carry.  We are not perfect, but with God's grace, we will have what we need.  There will likely be some challenges on the journey that we did not anticipate.  But, as the psalm reminds us, God is always faithful.  Always.

Prayer - Lord, help me to continue to embrace my cross, even when I feel I cannot go one more inch.  My strength is not sufficient, but Yours is perfect.  With You, I can wholeheartedly say "YES"!

Challenge - one of the songs we will be singing at Mass is "Glory in the Cross".  It's a great song for many reasons, but I want you to really focus on the refrain, 'Let us ever glory in the cross of Christ and the triumph of God's great love.'  If that is used in your parish, do you sing it and mean it?  Read the words (found here), and try and use it as your phrase this week, so that you can say you really do 'glory in the cross'.