Thursday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time
I love when a set of readings can simultaneously challenge and comfort me. Today’s readings are able to do just that. The first reading from Romans is an intense challenge to avoid selfishness and sin, while the Gospel is a comforting reminder that the Lord will not abandon us or forget us, even in our sinfulness. We are human and therefore are sinners, but thankfully we are able to repent and return to the Lord, who will be seeking us out, waiting for our return.
I think the most challenging line of this first reading is “so then each of us shall give an account of himself to God” (Romans 14:12). Looking back over my life there are moments that I will not be proud to recount to God – moments where I was not living for the Lord but was living selfishly and acting out of pride. This reading inspires and challenges me to think about every thought and action and ask – how would it feel to recount that moment to our Lord?
The beauty of this Gospel is that there is forgiveness for those moments when we have sinned and acted selfishly. Even more comforting than the fact that the Lord offers us a chance for repentance is that He is seeking each of us out, waiting for our repentance and our return to Him. Much like the man looking for his one lost sheep, the Lord is not sitting around thinking “well, I hope that sheep finds her way back home to me.” Rather, the Lord is seeking us out and searching for us to repent and return to him. And when we do repent and return to the Lord, he celebrates. He rejoices with the angels when even one sinner repents.
These readings challenge me to live each moment for the Lord, avoiding sin and selfishness. And I know that when I do fail and sin, the Lord will be seeking me out, waiting for me to return to him, preparing to celebrate my repentance.
- Amanda Grimm