A Great Surprise
February 13, 2023 at 3:52 p.m.
The Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
We all have our daily routines. I have a daily morning routine where I wake up and thank God for the day, head into the bathroom, brush my teeth, go downstairs for my morning coffee and watch a bit of the news. I then spend some time in prayer and get ready for work. I take the same route generally every day to the parish where I work and so my day begins. In general, there are no surprises or changes to this routine.
Think of your own morning routine, it is probably similar in that each morning you awake and probably do the same things to get yourselves to school or wherever it is you are going. We are not looking to be surprised, often we just want to get where we need to be.
I think sometimes in our faith life and journey it’s the same, we want to get to where we think, we are supposed to be. We follow a routine, Mass on Sunday, 5 minutes of prayer a day, confession once or twice a year, or whatever your faith journey looks like. Again, we are not really looking to be surprised.
But God, in His wisdom, does have a surprise for us. In the second reading on Sunday, Saint Paul speaks about “a great surprise” for all of us in this world. He tells us that “What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him.”
I love that – no matter where we are on this journey of faith, “the great surprise” is that God has more for us, that He is offering us more. We have not seen or heard in entirety all that God has planned and prepared for those who love Him – us. The truth is God has a greater plan for our lives than we could ever imagine; are we ready for that?
There is wisdom and grace and unconditional love in following Jesus. As Catholics, you and I are called to be different. We are called to follow the way of Jesus in what often is a trying and difficult world. But, the good news, the surprise of it all is that there is great joy in that, there is great wisdom and great love, and it is for you and me.
Related Stories
Friday, September 20, 2024
E-Editions
Events
The Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
We all have our daily routines. I have a daily morning routine where I wake up and thank God for the day, head into the bathroom, brush my teeth, go downstairs for my morning coffee and watch a bit of the news. I then spend some time in prayer and get ready for work. I take the same route generally every day to the parish where I work and so my day begins. In general, there are no surprises or changes to this routine.
Think of your own morning routine, it is probably similar in that each morning you awake and probably do the same things to get yourselves to school or wherever it is you are going. We are not looking to be surprised, often we just want to get where we need to be.
I think sometimes in our faith life and journey it’s the same, we want to get to where we think, we are supposed to be. We follow a routine, Mass on Sunday, 5 minutes of prayer a day, confession once or twice a year, or whatever your faith journey looks like. Again, we are not really looking to be surprised.
But God, in His wisdom, does have a surprise for us. In the second reading on Sunday, Saint Paul speaks about “a great surprise” for all of us in this world. He tells us that “What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him.”
I love that – no matter where we are on this journey of faith, “the great surprise” is that God has more for us, that He is offering us more. We have not seen or heard in entirety all that God has planned and prepared for those who love Him – us. The truth is God has a greater plan for our lives than we could ever imagine; are we ready for that?
There is wisdom and grace and unconditional love in following Jesus. As Catholics, you and I are called to be different. We are called to follow the way of Jesus in what often is a trying and difficult world. But, the good news, the surprise of it all is that there is great joy in that, there is great wisdom and great love, and it is for you and me.