November 13, 2005
READING 2: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6
GOSPEL: Matthew 25:14-30 "A man going on a journey called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them. To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one--to each according to his ability. Then he went away. Immediately the one who received five talents went and traded with them, and made another five. Likewise, the one who received two made another two. But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and buried his master's money. After a long time the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them. After a few days on the job, the new security guard came home despondent. “What happened?” his wife asked. “I was fired,” he moaned. “What happened?” “Well, when I was on duty at the desk, I dozed off for a moment and while I was asleep, someone broke into the building.” “But, honey, you are such a light sleeper. I’m surprised you didn’t wake up. There must have been some noise when the burglar broke in.” “I wasn’t fired for falling asleep,” he confessed, “I was fired for wearing ear plugs.” There are none as blind as those who refuse to see; there are none as deaf as those who refuse to hear. The burden of this gospel is not “What do we do when He returns?” But rather, “What do we do in the meantime?” What is it that causes some to succeed in life while others fail? What is the key to success? I have always been fascinated by why some people, in spite of all the advantages in life barely get by and why others who have some of the greatest challenges in life you can think of, have been able to turn those challenges into tremendous opportunities and are living the quality of life that few people even dream of. Consider the industrious woman who is praised in our first reading from the Book of Wisdom. She was not confined by the conventional wisdom of her day that restricted women. Conventional wisdom generates insecurity. Conventional wisdom follows the crowd. If following the crowd led to greatness, everyone would be living their dreams. I think that celebrated woman helps inform us about the parable of the talents. I’d like to suggest the ability to take action that is contrary to conventional wisdom is what separates the successful from those who are still hoping. What is the key to success? The ability to act in spite of everything is what makes our dreams our day to day reality. Jesus said, and he said it often, “Do not be afraid!” Jesus preached confidence, overcoming adversity, shaking the dust of rejection off our feet and moving to the next opportunity. If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. Jesus preached passion, faith, self-discipline and action. Success is not an accident. Success is not a random roll of the dice. There are specific paths, consistent logical actions. We need to turn on the magic that is within us simply by turning on our minds, conditioning our bodies, preparing our plan, and taking action. The evil one will sow seeds of confusion and fear, distractions, and paralysis. No matter how spiritually aligned you are, you will still have challenges, the storms will come, the winds will blow against you, the waves will still come. So, expect them. When you expect them, you can figure out how to use them to your advantage. That’s the way of God in this life, embracing the challenges and allowing them to make you become better. We need to turn our weakness into our strength. Don’t waste time reading about people who fail. The tabloids and entertainment shows are full of stories of failed romances, failed marriages, failed and wasted lives. The undisciplined, who may be the nicest of people, will still receive God’s blessings; but they will be unlikely to live their dreams. Read stories about people who have succeeded. Read about Michael Jordan who whenever he discovered a weakness in his game practiced until the weakness became a strength. If you sow the same seeds, you’ll harvest the same reward. We can choose for ourselves. But I believe most of us here have already chosen the Jesus path. We all want to tap our full potential, overcome our personal limitations, turn fear into confidence, to achieve whatever we want. God has great expectations, so must we! Those who have no dreams have no vision. Mother Teresa had a saying hung in one of her convents in India . In many ways it separates conventional wisdom from God’s Wisdom: Anyway People are unreasonable, illogical, and self centered, The cautious servant trusted neither himself nor his master. The servant is not allowed to profit from his lack of faith. When we put God first in our lives everything else follows. When we follow God’s plan we get better; our lives take a positive turn. God will help us turn our weaknesses into strengths. God wants to give us the confidence to do things some can not even imagine. Ultimately, the good news in today’s gospel is that those who dare to risk all they are and all they have been given will discover our God eager to share the power of His presence and the fulfillment that comes through participation in His mission. Those who dare to risk all in His service will discover a link with the teller of this story, who knows all about risks and whose love is neither conventionally prudent nor cheap nor calculating. Which would you rather hear when the end of your life becomes a new beginning: “You worthless, lazy lout?” or “Come share your Master’s joy?” Fr. Jeff McGowan |
