<sub>Holy Spirit Catholic Church
Homilies

Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time</sub>  

Jesus said, "Look how the wild flowers grow; they do not work . . . but I tell you that not even King Solomon with all his wealth had clothes as beautiful as one of these flowers." Jesus said, "Look at the birds . . . your Father in heaven takes care of them!  Aren't you worth much more than the birds?...So don't start worrying."  Jesus continues:  "Instead, be concerned about the Kingdom of God and what it requires of you." 

The kind of trust in God that Jesus is talking about is illustrated by the story of Ann Jillian, the beautiful actress who was equally at home on the Broadway stage, a Hollywood set, in front of television cameras, or singing as a headliner in Las Vegas.  She was on top of the world back in the mid-1980's when she discovered she had breast cancer and had to have a double mastectomy in hopes of saving her life. 

Ann Jillian was a devout Catholic and as soon as she got the diagnosis she went to St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church to pray for courage and strength.  She had gone there many times before, but never noticed the inscription above its front door.  This time, however, she noticed it and read it.  It seemed to have been written just for her at this moment in her life.  It is a prayer written by St. Francis de Sales and it is one of my favorites.  I try to pray it every day.

It reads:  "The same loving Father who cares for you today will take care of you tomorrow and every day.  Either He will shield you from suffering, or He will give you unfailing strength to bear it.  Be at peace then and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations."

Let us take a closer look at these words.  They promise something really important.  They promise that God, who is a loving, caring Father, will either protect us from suffering or give us the power to bear it when it comes.

They promise that God may not remove some cross that we are now carrying, but God will give us the strength to keep carrying it.  They promise that God may not ease some doubt that we are experiencing, but God will certainly give us the courage to keep walking in the dark.

It is about this same message of trust that speaks to us in today's Gospel.  Perhaps, like Ann Jillian, we may be suffering from a health problem that is threatening our peace of mind.  Perhaps we are suffering from an unfortunate situation at home that is concerning us more and more.  Perhaps we have a family member who is having a problem that threatens their welfare.

Each one of us has some problem that is threatening our peace of mind.  Each of us has some cloud that is hanging over our head.  Each of us has some cross that is weighing us down.  To each of us Jesus speaks to us in the spirit of those words above the door of St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church, the very words St. Francis de Sales himself use to pray:  "The same loving Father who cares for you today will take care of you tomorrow and every day.  Either He will shield you from suffering, or He will give you unfailing strength to bear it.  Be at peace then and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations."

This raises a question.  What do we do if we are finding it hard, if not nearly impossible, to put trust in God in our situation?

We should do what Ann Jillian did.  She went into church, knelt before the Blessed Sacrament, and prayed for the grace to trust that God loves us more than we love ourselves.

We should pray for the same grace that she did: the grace to trust that our heavenly Father will always be at our side to help and support us, no matter how dark things get.  If we do this, we will experience that same kind of peace that she did as she got up and left that church.

Now for the rest of the story about Ann Jillian.  In 1990 she was selected as one of the Top Ten most inspiring women in the world!  She has now acted in over twenty-five movies and numerous TV series.  She continues her acting and singing career as well as motivational/inspirational speaking.  To this day she remains cancer-free!

All of us, to some extent, have suffered some kind of setback, some cross to carry.  And all of us have experienced worry and anger because of them.  In today's Gospel, Jesus reminds us that all the worry and anger in the world won't change these setbacks or crosses one bit.

We should realize that our heavenly Father can use our setbacks or crosses and turn them into something good for us.  He can change what seems to be a cross into a blessing.  St. Paul makes this point in his Letter to the Romans, saying, "We know that all things work for good for those who love God." (Rom 8:28)

Today's Gospel tells us not to worry about life's setbacks.  It invites us to accept them graciously, trusting that, in the long run, God will turn them into blessings for us.  Let us ask the Lord to keep us from worrying about setbacks or crosses to carry.  That He will help us to see them not as stumbling blocks but as stepping stones in our journey to Him!