On Monday, January 1, I mentioned the Catholic counselor Ian Butler, and one question he asks parents is: ‘Why do you love your kids?’ He says 95% of mothers and 85% of fathers answer it correctly. ‘Why do you love your kids?’ ‘Because they’re my kids.’ ‘So, you don’t care about their faith, manners, or grades?’ ‘No, I do. It’s just that that’s not why I love them.’
This is how God loves us. Relationship first, morality second. God loves us but also cares about how we act, because happiness doesn’t consist in just receiving but in giving. That’s why being without a job when we can work hurts so much—we’re not realizing our potential. Being lazy, feeling useless, being stagnant in life are very painful. We’re designed to contribute, we want life to improve, and make people happy.
Today’s homily is about responding to God’s love and we’re going to focus on four truths in the Gospel:
1) “After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage’” (Mt 2:1-2). As we’ve talked about previously, these men are probably from modern-day Iran, they had heard the widely spread prophecy of a king who would be born in Judea, which is a month’s journey away, and they paid attention to what later Pope Benedict XVI would accept as an established fact, that there was a conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in the sky.
So, the first truth, which is good news, is that God is working in our lives right now, in spite of problems. He didn’t just speak to the Jewish people in Judea at that time, but reached out to everyone. The wise men didn’t complain that they didn’t have all the advantages of being the chosen people. Instead, they listened to God speaking in their situation! Therefore, none of us should complain that our year is off to a bad start, because God uses everything for His plan: bad health, difficult relationships, uncertainties about the future.
2) This leads to the second truth, about wisdom. These men are simply referred to as “wise” (Mt 2:1,7), probably focused on philosophy and astronomy: They’re attentive to what God is revealing to them, and they say that they ‘have come to pay him [Jesus] homage.’
So, don’t just try to become a better person this year—that’s not enough for the human person. The second truth is: The wise decision is to search for Jesus.
Last year, on Christ the King Sunday, 4 of us said we don’t want Jesus to be the center of our lives—God bless your honesty; God loves us and we’re still the center of His life. 219 said we want Him to be, so this is another year to move forward! And 281 of us said Jesus is the center, so now’s our year to rededicate ourselves to becoming saints.
“On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (Mt 2:11). The phrase ‘they knelt down and paid him homage’ is key, because, at the end of our life, we’re judged on our love for Jesus. What are we going to do this year to pay Jesus homage? It’s in our hands. We all have freedom. We can find Jesus more if we want. Faith Studies starts on Jan. 31, 2024 and it is one of the most powerful ways of spiritual growth.
And, for your information, next week, we’re going to do our 11:02 Prayer Initiative, which is where we pray for the people we love that they encounter Jesus.
3) This leads to the third truth: Ask for help. The wise men arrived in Jerusalem, and asked for help, ‘Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews?’ All of us have some idea about what would be best to do this year, but we get stuck on how to do it. The Holy Spirit never commands the impossible. Therefore, pick up the phone, send an email, ask spiritually mature people.
St. Ignatius of Loyola taught that in prayer we’re supposed to “ask God our Lord for what I want and desire.” If we feel stuck, we can: “ask grace of our Lord that I may not be deaf to His call, but ready and diligent to fulfill His most Holy Will”; “ask for interior knowledge of the Lord… that I may more love and follow Him”.
About a month ago, some people said they experienced a small miracle: They were expecting disaster on a test, but asked God for help, and God granted them a miracle, and they responded in faith. I realized that many of us see miracles every day, God’s always taking care of us, all day long. However, many of us don’t see this. So, let’s pray that we see God’s miracles this year. Nicky Gumbel of Alpha says, “When I pray, I see miracles. When I don’t pray, I don’t.”
4) The Gospel says, “When they had heard the king, they set out” (Mt 2:9). This indicates the importance of action. Once upon a time, three frogs were on a lily pad, and two of them decided to jump into the water. How many frogs were left on the lily? Three. Deciding is not the same as acting. We must act and respond. The fourth truth is that the Holy Spirit blesses action.
God the Father loves us. He gives us everything, and never leaves us.
Consequently, 1) He’s working in our lives right now, in spite of problems, and uses everything for our good. But He still cares how we act. 2) The wise decision is to search for Jesus. 3) Ask for help. 4) The Holy Spirit blesses action.
As St. John Paul II often told people: You have to decide. We have no one to blame but ourselves if this year is bad. Take responsibility for your life. God uses all things for our good and so should we.