Defend us in battle!
Jerusalem, abandoned and disgraced – the title of Lamentations Chapter 1.
How lonely she is now, the once crowded city! Widowed is she who was mistress over nations; The princess among the provinces has been made a toiling slave, Bitterly she weeps at night, tears upon her cheeks, with not one to console her of all her dear ones. Her friends have all betrayed her and become her enemies.
This is what I opened my Bible to on the first day of my retreat several weeks ago. This verse obviously speaks of loneliness and desertion. In fact, it is speaking of Jerusalem after its siege and destruction. But how does it apply to our world today? My thoughts immediately went to the abandonment of the Church by so many. “Been made a toiling slave” reminded me of how today’s Church is expected to compromise it’s precepts and moral teachings in order to increase its numbers – in order to accommodate and become attractive to those on the “outside.”
How sad is it? The Church is expected to change the way it thinks and operates but we, as individuals, are not. Is that fair? I think not. So “she weeps bitterly and no one is willing to console her.” “Her friends have all betrayed her” – the lukewarm, the fallen away. They have become her enemies – they are enemies because they choose to be of the world, they criticize, they convince others to fall away or they misinform and refuse to become more knowledgeable. They refuse to hear and live the Truth.
The challenges we face as a Church are enormous and at times can be discouraging. I teach religious education and am often the only source of faith formation for my students. Unfortunately, if I take my ministry “too seriously” (which of course, I do), I am met with resistance. Some even refuse to do anything extra, including taking their children to church on Sunday. Often I arrive to teach with great joy and expectation in my heart and leave heartbroken for various reasons. Sometimes I feel like giving up, I wonder if I should continue teaching. Week in and week out I am in conflict, but something tells me I need to stick it out. Some mornings I am brought to tears, feeling defeated and then I’m reminded of how Jesus must have felt while in agony in the garden and I say to myself: Suck it up, buttercup, it’s part of the journey!
Fast forward to Evening prayer on the same day of my retreat. I found hope in the reading. For those of you whose children have fallen away, this should give you some hope as well. It comes from 1 Corinthians 12:12-27, specifically 12:15 – If the foot would say “because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body.” Then Verse 12:18 – but, as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them as He chose!
Why hope? Because 1 Corinthians tells us we are ALL necessary parts of a whole. Each part has its job to do for the Kingdom. No one is “any less a part.” I took this to mean that even the fallen away, even those who challenge our purpose have a part to play for God’s kingdom. For example: My students and their families make me a better disciple. They are helping me hone out the virtues God so desperately wants me to possess. As a result of my interaction with them I desire to study more. I work extra hard to think of ways to witness that are still obedient to the teaching of the Church and yet attractive to them and others. My relationship with the Lord is getting deeper. In and through that depth others will come to know and love the Lord.
The same holds true for those parents who struggle with the reality that they fought so hard to raise their children in the faith and lost the battle. You may have lost the battle but you are winning the WAR! Your children have contributed to your spiritual growth. Through your own introspection you too have become a better disciple of Christ. You’ve taken the time to take stock of your actions – where you’ve gone wrong and what you’ve done right. You are now a better WARRIOR because of it!
We are all where we need to be on the journey. Our God is the God who created the universe and all that dwells there. Do you really believe He doesn’t know enough to strategically place us where He needs us most at any given moment?
Trust my friends! Be grateful for everything. The Divine plan is just that………………DIVINE! God bless you!
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