“If you can…”

Man oh man, if those are not some of the most relatable words in all of Scripture then I don’t know what is. I cannot even begin to count the amount of times in my own life I’ve approached the Lord with an “if you can” disposition of the heart.

“Lord, if you can, heal me of my sickness...”

“Lord, if you can, heal my relationship with my parents…”

“Lord, if you can, free me from the lies I’ve always believed about myself…”

I tell myself I have good reasons for approaching the Lord in this way. I don’t want to seem presumptuous, I don’t want to be a burden, surely there are other people in the world who need God’s help more than I do….and the list could continue. But the truth of the matter, the real reason why I cloak my requests with this specific qualifier, is because there exists in me a lingering question: “but what if He doesn't?” What if He doesn’t heal my sickness, what if He doesn’t heal my relationships or free me from the lies? I can imagine the father of the possessed boy felt similarly. The Scriptures tell us that the boy had been afflicted since his youth, his father had only ever known his son to be possessed, he probably felt that that was just the way things were, how they had to be. How guilty of that are we? I’m always sick because that’s just the way I am. My relationship with my parents has always been rocky, that’s just life. These lies I believe have always been a part of me, there’s no way around them. And so the father (and so we too) approaches the Lord, disheartened, dejected, and despairing. “If you can…” because no one else has before, because this is probably just the way things have to be, because what if you don’t.

But then, He does.

Because here’s the thing I’ve been learning about our God you guys, He always heals. In Scripture, anytime anyone approaches the Lord and asks for healing, His answer is always “Yes and Amen.” I didn’t used to believe that. My prayer life used to be filled with “If you cans...” But recently the Lord has been revealing to me that He always desires our healing. It may not always be immediate, and it may look differently than we expect, but whenever we ask for healing, the Healer draws us close, invites us deeper, and only when we’re close enough to hear his gentle whisper does he say, “just watch what I can do.”

My prayer for us today is that we would not be afraid to ask confidently from our Healing Father who always desires to give good gifts to his children!

What are you taking to the Lord and saying if you can?

What is keeping you back from trusting fully in the Lord?

Where have you seen Jesus come and heal you?

"Yes you can."

"Help my unbelief."

​"Jesus I trust in you."

In Step 3, where were the places that you have been telling God "if you can". Today turn them fully over to the Lord and ask Him to come and meet you. 

The sermon on the Mount is Jesus’ longest teaching in terms of how we ought to live and love. This Gospel, to me, is really intimidating. When I first read these words I was feeling slightly overwhelmed that Jesus is asking for too much. Especially because in our culture today, it is easier to cling to our own comforts and defenses, rather than to respond in kindness. The exhortations of Jesus are about turning the other cheek, offering your cloak, going the extra mile, and loving your enemies. Dang- a pretty tall order Jesus asks of Christians. Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. This is a big one, mainly because this is a call to be Christ, who is Love itself, to all we encounter- that includes enemies. As children of God, we are loved unconditionally, freely, and with mercy. This is what fuels our self-esteem, self worth, and confidence and we are called to not only live with this fuel for our lives, but to SHARE the truth of God’s love!

Just because we believe that this is a good thing to do, it doesn’t change the reality that it is a challenge to rise above and care for those in our lives that annoy us, hurt us, or misunderstand our circumstances. But as Jesus reminds us of this difficult question; what virtue is there if we only looked out for ourselves? What if we let our resentment against someone grow so strong that we do not even see the glimmer of Christ dwelling in their souls? When we have enemies that are difficult to love and we don’t WANT to be kind then that can almost always mean we should get over ourselves and love them. Not just by being nice, but by going that extra mile, turning our cheek, offering our cloak, and loving them well.
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We have to remember that He makes His sun rise on good and bad people and the rain falls on the just and unjust. Life isn’t a competition of how long we can hold on to grudges, but as Christian children, our lives are about being Christ to all despite how uncomfortable it may feel. No matter the inconvenience to help someone in need, no matter how much we want to be stubborn and unkind to our enemies, and no matter badly our hearts have been bruised- we can do the brave and courageous thing in life- surrender our will to Jesus and believe in His love. Believe in His power, Believe that the way He made you is good. Believe that there is hope for healing from any brokenness in your life.

It would be unfair of Jesus to give these instructions with no help. We cannot forget that the lesson of the Eucharist is that we are supplemented in our imperfect efforts and be fed for the difficult path that is before us, by the God who is perfect. So even when they teaching seem impossible, we know that we have help from the one who makes all things possible.

Who are you holding a grudge again that you need to let go?

How can you better love the people that you really struggle loving today?

What does it mean to be perfect as God is, instead of how the world is?

"Perfect my love."

"Help me to love like You."

"Thank you Jesus."

Make amends today. Let go of those grudges and choose to love people, especially the ones you want to hate the most.

I recently had a conversation with some friends about other non-Catholic denominations (i.e. branches of Christianity). One of my friends mentioned the year that one of the denominations was formed. What struck me about it was that it was founded after I was born. I’m older than that religion. There are many, many new expressions of Christianity springing up every year. Even if you’re pretty young, more likely than not even you are older than some of those denominations too.

I gotta say, personally I’d be a little uncomfortable if I was older than the religion I professed. Particularly if the original founder - in our case, Jesus Himself - walked the earth thousands of years ago.

This reflection is not meant to bash other non-Catholic Christians. The Lord is bearing fruit through many of them! It’s just that on a day like today - the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter - I’m so grateful to be Catholic.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks to Peter a famous line, especially for us Catholics: “And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church.” At that moment, St. Peter became our first pope. But my favorite part is the sometimes overlooked thing Jesus says next: “and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.”

That is what the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter is all about! It’s no secret that popes aren’t perfect. The Church has had a fair share of not-so-great popes. That’s why it’s not called the Feast of the Amazing Perfectness of Every Single Pope (St. Peter was far from perfect. Also, that’s a terrible name for a feast day). 

Even today some people don’t like Pope Francis. But Jesus’ promise is not so much about the pope himself ... It’s about his chair. I know that sounds weird, but his chair represents the authority of our Lord who founded the Catholic Church that you are a part of. He promised that no matter who sits on that pope-chair, no matter how imperfect they are, and no matter what happens, “the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.”

We are safe in the embrace of Holy Mother Church. As you pray with today’s Gospel, be at peace. As a Catholic, you are in the one place on earth where you are guaranteed to be victorious over the powers of hell.

​Happy Feast of the Chair of St. Peter!

Why are you grateful today, even if it's not always easy, to be Catholic?

What does Jesus' promise that the gates of the netherworld will not prevail against the Church mean for you and your life?

​How can you be more active and involved in the life of your church, bringing those who don't know Jesus to a full encounter with him through your sharing of your faith with them? 

"Thank you for the Church."

"Your promises are true."

"You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God."

Thank a priest today! Either through text / email / Facebook / Twitter / in person, tell them you're thankful for their ministry. Ideally, you'd thank the Pope himself; but since you likely don't have his number, you can thank your parish priest, and tell him you're praying for him, since his ministry comes from his Bishop, who does his ministry in union with the Pope who sits on that chair of St. Peter!