Answer

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Answer

Actions   Words

Honesty   Change   Obedience

And Believe In Him

Truth

(Photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Matthew 21:32

One day Jesus was talking to the chief priests and the elders and shared a parable about two sons. Their father had asked them to do some work. One of the sons refused the father but did the work and the other son said yes but did not act on it. Jesus compares this to the response of some of the chief priests and the elders to John the Baptist and says to them:

"When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him. Tax collectors and prostitutes did. Yet when you observed that, you did not change your minds and believe him."

Reflection

Sometimes we get answers that are very helpful for us and bring change in our lives.

There are also times when we give answers and do not act on them.

We might also struggle to find an answer to a difficult situation we are facing.

Answers don't always come instantly.

When we get or give an answer, we then have to translate that answer from the words into concrete actions.

In our reading from Matthew the chief priests and elders with whom Jesus is speaking (we have to note that this encounter certainly does not represent all of the chief priests and elders!), received an answer from John the Baptist but were not able to accept it even as it was accepted by prostitutes and tax collectors.

This reflects our own attempts to accept an answer that we might find difficult to reconcile with what we believe. These particular chief priests and elders did not feel that they had to accept the answers that John the Baptist was giving.

There are times in all of our lives when we cannot accept an answer. In those moments we have to take an honest look at our lives and see if there are changes that we need to make.

The son in this parable of Jesus who initially gives a negative answer to his father changes his answer through his actions. There are times when all of us follow this path. We reconsider our initial answer and make a change. 

That change led this son to obedience. He did what the father wanted him to do. After his initial resistance, he truly listened to not only what the father wanted but what he felt he should do.

These particular chief priests and elders had listened to John the Baptist but could not accept the answers that he was giving at that point in their lives. 

Of course we do not know if their response changed later on as the son changed his response. So many times we reflect on the words some one has shared with us later on after our initial encounter. We start to see the wisdom of those words and that can lead us to change.

Those changes can lead us to a deeper belief. The son changed and believed in his father. He realized that it was more beneficial for him in the long run to do what his father asked him to do. 

The other son answered in the affirmative but did not answer with his actions. He did not follow through. He said what he thought his father wanted to hear; but he did not really believe it was right for him to do what the father had asked. He excused himself from his answer.

It comes down to our embrace of the truth. 

Do we believe in our answer?

Do we feel that it is the right thing to do?

Are we willing to change from our preconceived notions of what we feel is the right path?

Do we want to take an easier path or one that will not demand as much from us?

The prostitutes and the tax collectors were open to the message from John the Baptist. They were willing to change and embrace the truth that God loved them in spite of their failings. They answered by saying yes to God's invitation.

What is your answer?

1. Have you ever been given an answer that you found difficult to accept?

2. Can you think of a time in your life when you reconsidered an initial answer and made a change?

3. Do you sometimes answer with what you think the other person wants to hear from you?

4. Can you relate to the prostitutes and the tax collectors in this story?

5. What do you see as you reflect on Kathy's photo of the Peace Pole?

(Scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John McNamara) 

Choose

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Choose

Life     Death

Find Joy In Suffering

Christ Will Be Magnified

Unity

(Photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Philippians 1:20c

Christ will be magnified in my body.

Reflection

How many choices do you make each day?

Isn't it amazing when you think about all of the decisions that you face daily?

When should I get up?

What should I wear?

What should I have for breakfast?

And that is just the start of your day!

In our reading from Philippians, Paul is facing a very difficult decision. He is writing from prison and knows that he could be facing death. This Good News that he has been preaching has been found to be dangerous by some of those in positions of power in the Roman Empire.

He could take the easy way out and just deny the Good News and stop talking about Jesus. If he is quiet and goes along with the official religion of the Empire and gives worship to the Emperor, his life will be spared and his suffering will be over.

That is not for Paul. He has found joy in the Gospel and true happiness in giving his life to Jesus. For Paul to live is to be one with Christ. He cannot deny the Gospel. Jesus has changed his life forever. He is even able to find joy in his suffering in prison because he knows that he is not alone. Jesus is with him every moment. 

His goal in all his choices is a simple one: how can my choice magnify Jesus and give Him the praise and the thanks that Jesus deserves. His choices are never about Paul. They are all centered in Jesus.

These choices lead Paul to become one with Jesus and through this unity one also with all the people he encounters. He is able to reach out to many of the communities of faith that he initiated through the power of the Holy Spirit. He writes letters from jail and receives visitors while imprisoned. 

His words can echo in our hearts and lives today. As we make our many choices each day, we have opportunities to follow Jesus by sharing the Love He gives us each day with the people we meet. 

Paul was able to do that while he was in prison. Nothing stopped him because he wanted to magnify Jesus. 

The smile you share with a stranger.

The food you give to the hungry.

The welcome you give to the immigrant.

The comfort you bring to the sick.

Those everyday choices that you and I make help the Gospel to come alive in our day and time.

Keep on choosing to magnify Christ!

1. Why do some people consider the Gospel to be dangerous?

2. Do you find joy in the Gospel as Paul did?

3. Is it really possible to find joy in suffering?

4. What is the goal of all the choices that you make each day?

5. What do you feel as you ponder Kathy's photo?

(Scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John McNamara)

Coin

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Coin

Life   Death

Spend   Love   Dedication

We Are The Lord's

Forgiveness

(Photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Romans 14:8

For if we live,

We live for the Lord.

If we die,

We die for the Lord.

Whether we live or die,

We are the Lord's.

Reflection

How do you spend your coin?

I think of the coin that God has given to me. I have been blessed with so many riches.

An amazing wife.

My family.

My friends.

My faith.

My Church community.

The coin that I have been given helps me to appreciate the gift of life. I cherish the blessings that surround me, and I thank God for the goodness of creation.

Paul, in our reading from Romans, talks about living for the Lord. We all try each day to put God first and to follow God's call. 

Paul says we also die for the Lord. Each day we are called to make sacrifices to help others. We have to die to that selfishness that places our own desires first. We try to become more aware of how we can help those who are in need.

We dedicate our lives to using the coin we have been given to make our world a more loving, kinder, and more compassionate place. We strengthen that dedication through our prayer, reflecting on God's Word, building up our community, and performing works of mercy.

We realize that we are the Lord's. God guides us in all we do, and we give ourselves completely to God. We hold nothing back.

That giving helps us in one of our most difficult tasks: to forgive those who have hurt us deeply or who have hurt those we love. 

We have been given a precious coin by God. It is the coin of forgiveness. 

It is that coin that can heal the pain we have experienced when someone has disappointed, attacked, or belittled us.

This degree of forgiveness is a challenge for all of us. God knows this and is patient with us. As we give ourselves to Jesus and realize we are the Lord's, Jesus can start us on our journey to be more forgiving.

As I ponder Kathy's photo of Mary holding Jesus after He was taken down from the cross, I see what forgiveness is all about. Jesus gave His life to let us know that we have been forgiven, we are loved, we are His.

His forgiveness is complete.

In His Love for us, He decided to give us a coin.

Each time we forgive someone whom we find it hard to forgive, we are spending that coin.

After we spend it, He gives us another one.

He never runs out of those coins.

He just invites us to accept them from Him and to spend them on forgiving others.

Don't hoard those coins!

1. What are some of the coins God has given to you?

2. How do you try to live for the Lord?

3. How do you die for the Lord?

4. In what ways do you use the coin of forgiveness?

5. What do you see as you ponder Kathy's photo?

(Scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John McNamara) 

Unpayable

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Unpayable

Love   Choice

Fulfillment   Moral   Law

Love Neighbor As Yourself

Requirement

(Photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Romans 13:8

You should owe nothing to anyone except to have love for one another.

If you love one another, you have fulfilled all the requirements of the Law.

Reflection

Have you ever accumulated a debt that you thought was unpayable? As you struggled with that, you might have wondered where you were going to get the money to pay it all back.

In our scripture from Romans, Paul is encouraging us                                                                                                                                                                            to have only one debt. He is calling us to have love for one another. 

When you think about this, we all have a debt that is unpayable. God has Loved us with a love that is so huge and complete that we can never pay that depth of Love back. We try to respond partially by the loving choices we make.

We try to spread sunshine into the lives of those who are burdened.

We try to reach out to others with a thoughtful telephone call.

We try to advocate for justice for those who are treated unfairly.

Those loving choices fulfill the moral law by bringing more love into people's lives. We never know the difference that can make. 

I always remember the story I heard about a young man who was thinking about ending his life one night. A friend of his was going to meet some people that night and "by chance" stopped by his house. As they talked together the young man realized he was not alone. He could feel the love coming from his friend. He found the comfort and strength to embrace life.

We are called to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. This often means putting others first before our own comfort and needs. It can mean responding to a friend or a stranger in the middle of the night when we get a sudden call or see someone we don't know in need of help. 

We ask ourselves in those situations, "What would I want others to do for me?"

Many times we are called to go beyond what is required and to do more for others. We do this when we realize that God has absolutely no requirement to love us. God's Love is a total GIFT for us. There is no way that we can pay God back for that Love. 

It is an unpayable debt. 

God gives it freely.

He simply asks us to love everyone we encounter each day as we love ourselves.

God challenges us to love others.

God shows us the way!

1. Have you ever felt overwhelmed with your debts?

2. Why is the debt we owe to God unpayable?

3. What are some loving choices that God is calling you to make today?

4. Can you think of a choice you made to love that made a difference in someone else's life?

5. What do you see as you ponder Kathy's photo?

(Scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John McNamara)

Discipleship

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Discipleship

Cost   Conduct

Deny   Oneself   Yes To God

Take Up A Cross

Follow

(Photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Matthew 16:24

Jesus was talking to Peter and the other Apostles about the suffering that He would be facing. They found it hard to accept this part of the teaching of Jesus.

Jesus told them:

"If you want to follow Me, you must take up your cross and follow Me."

Reflection

How do you react when someone challenges you to do something that you really don't want to do?

In our reading from Matthew that is exactly the situation that Peter and the Apostles find themselves in. They do not want to hear that Jesus will have to suffer. We can't blame them. We would react the same way. We feel terrible that Jesus underwent the sufferings He endured.

We continually ask ourselves "Why?" in the face of suffering. We get mad at God because there is suffering in the world. We get disgusted and upset when we see the pictures of innocent children dying in war zones. We hunger for a better world.

There are times in life, however, when we have to pay a cost for our beliefs, our faithfulness to God's teachings, and our struggle to achieve justice in a world that we know is very far from justice.

I think of John Lewis on a bridge in Selma, Alabama, getting his head bashed in because he wants to help Black people to vote.

I think of Nelson Mandela locked in a prison for over twenty years because he wanted to end apartheid in South Africa.

I think of Martin Luther King, Jr., assassinated because he was advocating for the rights of his people and for sanitation workers to have a better wage.

I think of our soldiers who have sacrificed their lives for our freedom.

There is a cost when we try to follow the Good News of Jesus. Will we conduct our lives in such a way that we are willing to pay that cost or will we remain quiet and uninvolved because we don't want to make waves or stand up for what is true and right?

There will be times when we have to deny ourselves the comfort of going along with everyone else and turning away from the challenge of confronting an evil in our society. Others might caution us not to raise our voices and take a stand. They are, like Peter and the Apostles, very well intentioned. They do not want us to get hurt.

We face the choice sometimes: will we say "Yes" to their voices urging caution and timidity or will we say "Yes" to God because we know that God wants us to help those who are in need, those who are struggling to survive?

Jesus had to take up His cross because He faced misunderstanding and opposition. If we are His followers, why would we ever think that we would escape taking up the cross as well?

We know that our world is not perfect and that there are evils around us and within us all the time. As we try to follow Jesus, we ask for His strength and guidance to be able to take up the crosses that daily confront us and to walk in the paths where He will lead us.

We are not alone.

We are His disciples.

We follow!

1. How do you react when you are confronted with suffering?

2. What is your feeling when you contemplate the sufferings that Jesus faced?

3. Are you willing to pay a cost for believing in Jesus?

4. Who are some of the people you know who have had to pay a cost for following Jesus?

5. What do you feel as you ponder Kathy's photo?

(Scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John McNamara)

Identity

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Identity

Turning   Point

Jesus   Peter   Rock

Who Do You Say I Am?

Messiah

(Photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Matthew 16: 15

Jesus was talking with the apostles in the area of Caesarea Philippi and asked them what they had heard about Him. He asked them:

"Who do you say that I am?"

Reflection

We can spend a lot of time thinking about our identity. We wonder what can truly define us.

Am I a husband?

Am I a teacher?

Am I an advocate for justice?

Am I a father?

 Am I a grandfather?

When we look at it carefully, we can say that we are made up of several identities. We are complex. We are involved in many activities and assume many roles.

In our passage from Matthew, Jesus is seeking the knowledge of the apostles. What have they heard about Him from others? What are people saying about Him now that He has been preaching, teaching, and healing for some time in His public ministry?

After Jesus gets that feedback and the variety of responses, He then questions the apostles directly. He asks for their understanding and not just what others have been saying. It is a turning point in His relationship with them. He is asking them to state their truth. They have been travelling with Him and observing Him for a good while now. What do they think?

Peter is the one who speaks up. He is clear. He is forceful. He is direct. With his clear faith in Jesus, he becomes their rock and the rock of the Church. 

He states that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God. He proclaims that Jesus is the Messiah. He is very clear about the identity of Jesus. 

Jesus affirms Peter. He knows His identity. He knows about His mission from God. He understands what He must do.

At this point Jesus has had a lot of opposition, and it is understandable. He is from a small town and has no religious training that can compete with the religious leaders in Jerusalem. He is not part of the religious establishment of His day.

Peter sees beyond that and recognizes something that is unique in Jesus. He believes in Jesus. He sees the true identity of Jesus.

We are called today to answer the question that Peter answered. Who is Jesus for us? Who do we say He is?

As I personally reflect on the question of my own identity, I would answer that I am a follower of Jesus. I trust in Him. I believe in Him. I try to live the moral code that He proclaimed, embraced, and lived.

He is the Messiah.

He is the Son of the living God.

He is my Friend and Lover. 

Who is Jesus for you?

1. How have you discovered your identity?

2. As you have talked with other people, what have you heard them saying about the identity of Jesus?

3. Why did Peter become the rock of the Church?

4. Why is it understandable that Jesus would face so much opposition?

5. Who is Jesus for you?

6. What do you feel as you contemplate Kathy's photo?

(Scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John McNamara)

Canaanite Woman

 

The Spiritual Waiting Room

Canaanite Woman

Persistent    Interruptor

Trusting   Calling   Kneeling

Have Pity On Me Lord

Undeterred Mother

(Photo and poem by Kathy McNamara)

Scripture:   Matthew 15: 22

One day Jesus was traveling in a Canaanite district and one of the women from that area approached Him and said:

"Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is struggling with a devil."

Reflection

If your daughter was suffering, what would you do to try to get help for her?

I think most of us would answer that we would do anything we could to try to alleviate her pain. So many times when my children were sick, I would want to take on their suffering myself so that they could feel better. 

The Canaanite Woman in our passage from Matthew is in that exact situation. She wants help for her daughter who is suffering from a demon. 

She knows that she is out of place in approaching Jesus. She is a Gentile and He is Jewish. His mission is first to the People of Israel. 

She is persistent, however. She is fighting for her daughter. She interrupts Jesus even though the apostles try to keep her away from Him. She will not be denied.

Even though she is not Jewish, she recognizes Jesus as Lord and as the Son of David---a messianic title. In some way God has touched her heart with the recognition that Jesus is special. She has been blessed with the gift of faith.

She places her trust in Jesus.

She calls out to Him in her anguish.

She demonstrates her faith by kneeling before Jesus. She knows He is extraordinary. She believes He can help her. She does not give up---even when Jesus tries to dismiss her because she is not Jewish.

She asks for pity.

She asks for compassion.

She asks not for herself but for her daughter.

She reminds me of how I have prayed when my children were sick. I was not thinking about myself. I just wanted them to feel better. I put them in the arms of Jesus. I asked Jesus to heal them.

The Canaanite Woman is an undeterred mother. She will never take no as an answer. Her daughter is too important. 

The Canaanite Woman gives us an example of faith and persistence. She believes in Jesus. She will not give up. She keeps on trying. 

Help us Jesus to place our trust in you just as the Canaanite Woman did!

1. How do you feel when your children or children you know are ill?

2. Are you persistent in your prayer or do you tend to give up if you do not get an immediate response?

3. Do you acknowledge Jesus as Lord?

4. Is it challenging for you sometimes to place all your trust in Jesus?

5. What do you feel as you reflect on Kathy's photo?

(Scripture adaptation, reflection, and questions by John McNamara)