You duped me, O LORD, and I let myself be duped;
you were too strong for me, and you triumphed.
All the day I am an object of laughter;
everyone mocks me.
Whenever I speak, I must cry out,
violence and outrage is my message;
the word of the LORD has brought me
derision and reproach all the day.
I say to myself, I will not mention him,
I will speak in his name no more.
But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart,
imprisoned in my bones;
I grow weary holding it in, I cannot endure it.
you were too strong for me, and you triumphed.
All the day I am an object of laughter;
everyone mocks me.
Whenever I speak, I must cry out,
violence and outrage is my message;
the word of the LORD has brought me
derision and reproach all the day.
I say to myself, I will not mention him,
I will speak in his name no more.
But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart,
imprisoned in my bones;
I grow weary holding it in, I cannot endure it.
Jeremiah 20.7-9
(First Reading, 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time)
Have you ever reached that place in life where someone has frustrated or hurt you so deeply that you can shamefully awknowledge you are to the point that you almost want nothing at all to do with this person or situation?
This is the prophet Jeremiah. Having suffered so much in his life he near threatens to walk away from the Lord. There is only one problem with this...he finds he cannot. Jeremiah is at his breaking point but the love of the Lord triumphs in his heart and he admits that, at the end of the day, he must speak the truth of the Lord, as he understands it.
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| Jeremiah |
The first reading from this Sunday's readings leads us to an examination of what it means to really turn our will and our lives over to the care of God. Having reached the breaking point in our lives what do we do with the love, the energy if you will, that God gives us? Do we shrink from it and deny it? Do we threaten to walk away from it? Do we turn from God and look for comfort and consolation in something that may not be healthy for us?
Can we be like Jeremiah and humbly admit that God does have the better of us? It is easy to let frustration run and rule our lives. That is the easy way out. Taking Jeremiah's path will invite us to a closeness with God that can only really come when we truly abandon ourselves to God's will and power.
In examining our lives we take up the task of bettering ourselves and of growing maturely in our relationships and our struggles. Obstacles become opportunities for us to grow in our lives rather than grow bitter or resentful. It is a daily struggle but not impossible.
We can take this chapter from Jeremiah's life and learn that whatever we are facing now in this life is not impossible with God's love as the foundation of our existence. We must remember that God is always present and faithful and that even though we struggle in this life there is the promise of God's power in our day that will see us through.
It takes a deliberate act on our part to see that. We must choose life and life to the full. We must not become so resigned in life that we lose courage and lose hope. A gentle pause in our day can allow us to re-centre ourselves and let God speak to us. We will be reassured and comforted. We will be embraced and loved.
Our hearts will become so convinced of God's love that we will become like Jeremiah and will speak of His love and His mercy. We will have to let it out. God's love should not be stifled by our fear or insecurities. We will know peace and we will share it with the world.
