This Isn’t How It’s Supposed to Be (02/08/2023)

I made the mistake of watching the news yesterday afternoon. As I sat and listened, my mind kept chirping in “this isn’t how it’s supposed to be.” I wouldn’t say I lost all hope, but I would say it was as depressing as being in a deep hole without a ladder out. And then I went to teach faith formation to 6th graders. And one of the students shared he was 10 years cancer free, and we celebrated. And it was like I’d been given a hand up from that deep pit. Now this is how it’s supposed to be.

We went over to church because it was our class’s turn for confessions. I dismissed the class from church and slowly made my way back to the classroom to clean up. When I walked in, one of the students was there. He had already returned all the books to the bin and collected the laminated sheets on confession. I smiled. This is how it’s supposed to be.

Blessings come to us in miracles, in illnesses and diseases that are healed. But they also come to us in the display of goodness and thoughtfulness in another. And when it is a young person who displays such goodness and thoughtfulness, our hope is amplified. As I sat last evening reflecting on my day, the image of that young man hustling around the classroom with a smile on his face and the sense of mission stayed with me. I thanked the LORD for this young man and told the LORD what He already knew, “Thank you, LORD, I needed that.”

We all have a mission given to us by Christ to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth; He also gave us the means with which to do it – “Love one another as I have loved you.” Nowhere in Jesus’ teachings did He insist that our efforts had to be monumental such as discovering an 8th continent, but everywhere in Jesus’ teachings we are reminded that we are because of the LORD and the LORD’s love, and we are to be people of love. That love for our LORD and one another brings goodness into the world that dispels the darkness and enhances the lives of others with the zest of loving kindness.

This day, as we go forth on our continued journeys in faith, let us carry with us the sense of mission of true disciples of Christ knowing that we have the opportunity to bring Christ to others and others to Christ through our words and actions. May we be light in the darkness and seasoning in a hungry world.

Until tomorrow, let us all love well.

Thoughts? Questions? Requests? – katewiskus@gmail.come