The Sacrament of "Today"
Nov
4
Written by:
Sunday, November 04, 2007
31st Sunday Ordinary Time
November 4, 2007
Come out of that tree, Zachaeus! I mean to stay in your house -- today! Luke 19:5
My grandmother, who lived in San Diego, had a long, slow battle with cancer. During this period, we had quite a few rather frank discussions about her condition and impending death. Sometimes I would enter her room and casually remark to her, "Well, are you ready to go yet?" And she would say to me, "Yes -- I am ready to go. But tomorrow. I want to wait until tomorrow. Lord, please give me one more day. Not today, Lord, but – tomorrow!
In my life I have seldom heard anything that so fully sums up the human condition. No matter how well prepared we think we are for what lies ahead, especially if it is difficult, we would just as soon have it wait until tomorrow.
There is in this world a most sacred place. It is the place where each of us actually lives. In fact, that place has a name. It is, in fact, "today." We all exist on this earth, now in this present life, in time. We cannot relive the past, no matter how hard we may try, nor truly see the future. God, on the other hand, exists outside of time. He exists in our past, our present, and our future. He is in all of these places, all the time.
I really do think many of us are worrying about the wrong things. We just get way too many news reports: internet, blogs, TV, magazines, newspapers, radio, cell phones. Sometimes even the spiritual websites are filled with one alarming prediction after another. People worry about terrorists, disappearing bees, global warming, nuclear issues, fires, even asteroids! Can you believe all this? We worry about so many health concerns on top of this, but what is the important thing? To live for God today. That is the best way we can prepare for whatever is going to happen tomorrow. To care about our soul, and our relationship with God – today.
What does God ask of you and me, then? Simply to live in the here and now. To live in the "today" of our lives, that one and only place where God and his grace truly intersects our lives. Jesus is looking at us, sitting up in our tree like Zachaeus, striving to get glimpses of him, trying to live in the future or dwell in the past. He looks up and says to Zachaeus -- and to us: Come down out of that tree! I mean to stay in your house – TODAY.
Father Gary