Have Faith And Pray

When I was doing my research for this homily, I found this prayer, which I thought tied in quite nicely with the homily. It's a prayer we should all pray when we don't get what we pray for. It goes like this:

I asked for strength that I might achieve;

I was made weak that I might learn humbly to obey.

I asked for health that I might do greater things;

I was given infirmity that I might do better things.

I asked for riches that I might be happy;

I was given poverty that I might be wise.

I asked for power that I might have the praise of men;

I was given weakness that I might feel the need of God.

I asked for all things that I might enjoy life;

I was given life that I might enjoy all things.

I got nothing that I had asked for,

but everything that I had hoped for.

Almost despite myself my unspoken prayers were answered;

I am, among all men, most richly blessed.

When we turn to other people and things to meet our needs, we turn away from God just like Israel did. There are so many people today who believe that if they can simply do this or that, then their lives will be fulfilled. They are very disappointed when they reach their goals and discover that the view from the top isn't as great as they thought it would be. They try to hide their disappointment with drugs, alcohol sex or material goods. They reached their goals without asking God if their goals were compatible with his plans for their lives. We only have to look at the recent death of Canadian actor Corey Monteith to see the painful truth. He seemed to have it all: fame, a starring role in the hit TV Series "Glee" and a relationship with one of his co-stars. These signs of success hid a painful secret-an addiction to drugs. This addiction combined with alcohol to cause his death in a Vancouver hotel room a couple of weeks ago. God wants us to seek, ask and knock and in return he promises to answer our prayers. We need to plant our roots deep in the faith of who Jesus is and what he did for us. That way, when the storms of life hit us, we will remain strong.

If we are to be like Christ, we must also forgive others like God forgives us. We as Christians are to be faithful reflections of the image and values of God. How can the world learn of God's forgiveness if we do not forgive others?

The story of the man who loaned the three loaves of bread is a metaphor for God's promise to save his people. People in that area and culture took hospitality seriously at that time. Failing to show hospitality would bring shame on the host family because the traveller would go to other homes for help and tell everyone about the person who refused to show hospitality. God refuses to allow his name to be brought to shame, so he saves his people. In other words, he keeps his promises and shows his own version of hospitality.

So how do we keep our faith strong in the face of our modern, secular, godless society? One way is through studying the Scriptures and through prayer. Jesus said that genuine prayer depends on knowing God instead of on our own efforts. When we pray, we become God's warriors in our battered world, and our main duty is to serve him. We fight our battles by being kind to people we come in contact with, being godly to those who are non-believers and by being an upright witness to the world for the glory of Christ who lives in us. Once we are alive in Christ we must be and do for others what Christ has done for us. In other words, we must be like Christ.