Wednesday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time
Recently, we had a conversation at hospital about the ability of people to change. What struck me was that most of us felt people could change, while others thought generally people cannot change. Experiences with people are unable to break free from addiction has shaped this perception of the inability to change. What I find so profound about this conversation is that we all work for an organization whose main mission is to be change agents for the patients well-being.
Moses was already a change agent by the time he climbed up Sinai to receive the commandments. He had already encountered the Lord before in the burning bush. Yet, this encounter seemed more intense. Perhaps it was the forty days and nights of fasting in the constant presence of the Lord. What we do know is that the radiance of his face made him look different and this caused many to fear Moses. We also have opportunities for profound encounters with the Lord that can change us. How are these changes recognizable to others?
Certainly, the Lord changes us through our sacramental encounters especially through Eucharist. Do these opportunities affect change in us? In a way we could almost look at the burning bush experience a sacramental moment. Moses’ transformation began in profound way through his encounter of God. For us there are hidden treasures, chance encounters perhaps through which God is trying to speak to us or even transform us. While walking last evening my wife and I ran into one of her old friends. In catching up revealed the friend had recently dropped off his son at basic training. In sharing about this experience he described how God helped this man recognize that the son had a calling to service. What was profound for us was that my wife and I had just been wrestling with the question of our own son considering the military and how to best to support him. This encounter was no accident, God provides rich encounters that transform our vision often revealing deeper truths.
Like Moses and the person in today’s gospel, God speaks truth to us through variety of modalities. The Lord’s message is often not clear right away, but when it is do we respond by giving our heart completely?
“Lord help us to fully embrace the treasures that you have given us so that we might be respond to the transformative call of Your Spirit with an enthusiastic yes.”
- Deacon Michael Montgomery