Philippians 4:4-7
Brothers and sisters:
Rejoice in the Lord always.
I shall say it again: rejoice!
Your kindness should be known to all.
The Lord is near.
Have no anxiety at all, but in everything,
by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving,
make your requests known to God.
Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding
will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Rejoice! That's what we heard today. I say Rejoice!
Today is Gaudete Sunday. When you went to Mass today, you saw the rose vestments. They are there to remind us that we need to Rejoice. The Lord is near.
How can we rejoice right now? For some of us, life isn't going awesomely. Friday was an outright terrible day. Innocent children were slaughtered in their elementary school. People are dying, families are suffering. This only adds to the stress of Christmas coming, families colliding together and school picking up JUST in time. But we are supposed to rejoice.
How dare you call us to rejoice? God must not get it. He must not understand it. There is no way He can command me to do that and understand what I face down here. The uncertainty of my future, the fact that everything sacred seems to be under attack.
Sometimes life seems like such an overwhelming task that it seems impossible to rejoice. The closer that we draw to Jesus, the harder it gets.
Sometimes the more that I know, the more I wish I didn't know.
Brothers and sisters, life is overwhelming. It's huge and looming. There is absolutely NO way that we can handle it on our own.
Paul reminds us, Rejoice, and do not be anxious in everything, but with prayer and petition and with thanksgiving present your requests to God. The peace of God which transcends all human understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
God wants us to rejoice because He has it under control.
All the suffering, the pain, the ridiculousness we endure are a Gift from Him. We must be thankful because without Him, we cannot bear it.
Suffering is an opportunity to shed the layers of this world and clutch onto Jesus; He who endured the cross for you.
Without tragedy and pain, it would be really easy to ignore our need for a Savior. It's only human.
The Peace of God is so much bigger than any tragedy or obstacle. When tragedy strikes, it takes away the distractions and the stupidity that separate us from Him.
Tell God what is on your heart. He needs to hear it. But, you need to be ready to listen. He is going to give you a great and amazing gift. But, you need to be ready in your mind heart and spirit to receive it.
It is so tempting and so human to get upset and not trust and to turn away from God when things do not go the way that we think they should go. We want to fix it and understand it on our own terms.
Brothers and Sisters, without God, nothing gets fixed. We will have no Understanding.
Let go, Rejoice! He is with you!
Be thankful. Let Him hear you and do His job of giving you what you desire in the deepness of your heart.
This life can certainly be terrible at times. But, this is the greatest opportunity to rejoice.
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