11-Oct-2016 Dear Friend, We live in an age of speed and instant response. Engineering and technology have provided us with tools that speed up things for us. But while work can be speeded up, people and relationships take their own time and cannot be pushed. As we get used to quick responses we tend to even push God and expect him to instantly respond to us. But when something or someone is important to us we are ready to wait. Is God important to us? Can we wait for Him? He makes life work for us in His time! Have an unhurried weekend waiting on Him! -Fr. Jude Sun Ref. XXIX Sunday: ‘Pray unceasingly and God will answer your prayer’ 16-Oct-2016Exodus 17: 8-15; 2 Tim. 3: 14-4:2; Luke 18: 1-8;
In the first reading from Exodus we read of Israel entering into battle for the first time in its history. Israel’s way to the Promised Land was blocked by the Amalekites and Moses orders Joshua to oppose them. Joshua does. While the battle rages Moses looks at the battle scene from a hilltop. Moses then raises his hands in prayer and whenever his hands are raised, Israel prevails in battle and whenever he lowers his hands the Amalekites prevail. So Moses’ companions support him so that he can pray continuously and victory is assured. Prayer PowerSome years ago Guideposts magazine printed a remarkable story about a young high school teacher named Mary. She wanted so much to succeed as a teacher. But a student named Bill was turning her into a nervous wreck. One morning, before school began, Mary was sitting at her classroom desk writing something in shorthand. Suddenly Bill appeared at the door. “What are you writing?” he asked as he approached her desk, “I’m writing a prayer to God,” she said, “Can God read shorthand?” he joked. “He can do anything,” said Mary, “even answer this prayer.” Then she tucked the prayer inside her Bible and turned to write on the chalkboard. As she did, Bill slipped the prayer from her Bible into his typing book. Twenty years later Bill came across his old typing book. Picking it up, Bill found the shorthand prayer. He gave the prayer to his secretary to decipher. She read it and blushed. “It’s rather personal,” she said. “I’ll type it out and put it on your desk when I leave tonight.” That night Bill read the prayer. It said: “Dear God, don’t let me fail this job. I can’t handle my class with Bill upsetting it. Touch his heart. He’s someone who can become either very good or very evil.” The final sentence bit Bill like a hammer. Only hours before, he was contemplating making a decision that would commit him to a life of evil. During the next week Bill took the prayer out several times to read it. That prayer caused Bill to change his mind. Weeks later Bill located his old teacher and told her how her prayer had changed his life.Mark Link in ‘Sunday Homilies’ Today’s gospel speaks of the need of perseverance in prayer. To illustrate this Jesus tells the parable of the unjust judge and the persistent widow. She seeks judgement against her enemy, but the judge does not have time to listen to her. But she kept at him until he finally helped her. In the parable the focus is clearly on the widow. The unjust judge is the foil that makes her greatness stand out; he is not important in himself. We must certainly not identify him with God. Though he ends up like God –giving justice to the widow; that is the only resemblance. The widow is in fact a wonderful person, one of the great characters of the gospels. The widow is poor. She cannot back her claims for justice with money or influential people; her power lies entirely in her moral qualities, her passion and her perseverance. But she believes that her cause is just and that ultimately justice will prevail. She stands as a symbol of hope; of the poor and helpless who rely solely on God to grant them justice. Jesus says in conclusion, “Will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry out to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you God will quickly grant justice to them.” God is faithful in answering our prayers, although the answers may take time and may not quite be what we expect. God’s time may not be our time, but in His time He will answer our prayer. Film – HeartlandThe movie Heartland dramatizes the story of rugged prairie life in the early 1900’s. A widow named Elinore Randall answers an ad to become a housekeeper for Clyde Stewart, a taciturn cattle homesteader in Burntfork, Wyoming. After a rocky beginning, their relationship smoothes out and they eventually get married, partly out of economic convenience and partly out of deep human needs. Together they heroically endure the hardships of a stubborn soil that yields little food, freezing winter winds that decimate their herd and the death of their new born little boy. In the climax of the story, Clyde Stewart has given up on the cattle ranch and begins to pack their belongings. But Elinore won’t let him quit. She pleads and bargains with him not to abandon their dream. Her tenacity triumphs when a calf is born, a sign of a new beginning, new life and new hope. Clyde finally agrees to stay and give the ranch one more try. Elinore’s persistence and faith are comparable to the widow’s in today’s parable. The widow kept coming to the judge for her rights and eventually wore him out. Jesus uses her as an example of praying always and not losing heart. Albert Cylwicki in ‘His Word Resounds’ Never give up!Years ago in Illinois, a young man with six months’ schooling to his credit ran for an office in the legislature. As might have been expected, he was beaten. Next, he entered business but failed at that, too, and spent the next 17 years paying the debts of his worthless partner. He fell in love with a charming lady and became engaged – and she died. He had a nervous breakdown. He ran for Congress and was defeated. He then tried to obtain an appointment to the U.S. Land Office, but didn’t succeed. He became a candidate for the Vice-Presidency and lost. Two years later he was defeated for Senator. He ran for office once more and was elected. The man’s name was Abraham Lincoln. -And it took Winston Churchill three years to get through the eighth grade, because he couldn’t pass English – of all things! Ironically, he was asked many years later to give the commencement address at Oxford University. His now famous speech consisted of only three words: “Never give up!”Harold Buetow in ‘God Still Speaks! Listen’ Never giving up!His name is Bruce MacDonald. He has never married and is earnestly looking for a wife. At sixty-one years of age he protests that he is not a confirmed bachelor but a prospective husband. In a television interview he admitted that time was running out. From the interview it became clear that our hero had developed through the years a dry sense of humour. He said that nobody seems to want the serious attention of a sixty-one year old whose declared pastime is playing the bagpipes! In an effort to speed his chances of success, Mr. MacDonald has taken to going on “Singles Weekends”. His success so far has been the exchange of addresses with promises to keep in contact. Nobody ever has. Still, Mr. McDonald lives in the belief that his persistence will be rewarded. -When people are persistent but seem to have little chance, we wonder why they bother. Persistence is often regarded in our society not as a virtue but as a vice: ‘He’s got a nerve asking again when he’s been refused time and time again.” Some people refuse to take no for an answer and hope that their persistence will pay off in the long run. Sometimes it does.Denis McBride in ‘Seasons of the Word’ May we never forget that God our Father listens to our prayers always! Fr. Jude Botelho botelhoj...@gmail.com PS. The stories, incidents and anecdotes used in the reflections have been collected over the years from books as well as from sources over the net and from e-mails received. Every effort is made to acknowledge authors whenever possible. If you send in stories or illustrations I would be grateful if you could quote the source as well so that they can be acknowledged if used in these reflections.These reflections are also available on my Web site www.NetForLife.net Thank you.
