There are basically two
ways to approach life when things get rough.
We can either cut and run, or hang in there and be true to our
purpose. There is a story in Luke’s
gospel that illustrates these two different approaches. As the story goes, some Pharisees warned
Jesus and wanted him to cut and run because Herod was out to kill him. But, Jesus would have none of it. Instead, Jesus turns this warning on its head
to show Herod what he was about—healing and reaching out to those in need. “Go and tell that
fox,” Jesus says in reply, “Behold, I cast out demons and I perform healings…”
(Lk 13:32).
His compassionate love for those in need is what
motivated Jesus to come in the first place.
Healing those who are wounded and broken is the will of his heavenly
Father, and Jesus is driven to carry out his Father’s will, even at the cost of
his own life. He reveals this passionate
aim when he says to his disciples: “My food is to do the will of Him who sent
me, and to finish His work” (Jn 4:34).
Jesus’ passionate love for the Father’s will motivates
his lament over the stubbornness of Jerusalem.
Jesus is keenly aware of Jerusalem’s need for conversion, and he cries
because the only reason conversion will not come is due to the stubbornness of
the Israelites. This sadness of Jesus is
borne out of love, not out of judgment. Jesus is profoundly troubled because, if
Jerusalem does not convert, eventually Jerusalem will abandon God.
All of this serves to remind us of our own call to
conversion and how we might respond. At
times, we too resist and ignore God’s call because we prefer our own interests
rather than the will of God. Too many
reasons account for why our vision gets obscured in this way. We are not alone in our struggle, however. Jesus understands the reality and the
difficulty we face.
At two very critical moments in his life when things
got rough, he too was tempted to pursue his own interests rather than the will
of God. This temptation was more intense at the beginning of his mission during
his sojourn in the desert, and again at the end of his mission during his agony
in the garden. His unwavering response in both cases, however, provides the sure
example for us to follow, especially his prayer in the garden: Father, if you are willing, take this cup away
from me—yet, not my will but yours be done (Lk 22:42).
This can be our prayer as well. No matter how rough things get for us, Jesus guarantees
the outcome. He makes this clear to the
scholar who asks, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus tells him, “You shall love the Lord,
your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and
with all your mind—and your neighbor as yourself…do this and you will live” (Lk
18:26-28). The proof is in the pudding. If
God is for us, who can be against us?
Nothing and no one can separate us from the love of God because God is
never failing in his love for us.
Basking in the love of God is the only way to go, especially when life
gets rough.
