One of the most difficult things to do, both in one’s professional life and in personal relationships, is to disagree pointedly with a big plan that someone important has.
If the boss comes in and is extremely excited about a course of action that literally everyone else on his or her staff can plainly see is not only going to fail, but is going to fail spectacularly, it puts everyone in a tough spot. What is the prudent thing to do? Let it play out and have them learn the lesson the hard way? Or speak up to prevent a catastrophe and risk being labeled as a naysayer? Either way, one thing is certain: it’s always easier to speak up and voice one’s opinion if there is a foundation of trust. Perhaps that trust is why families are much more free and open in telling one another when their plans are just plain dumb.
I mention these situations of poor planning because this week’s Gospel always strikes me as being completely foolhardy from a numbers perspective. Jesus rhetorically asks his disciples “What man among you having a hundred sheep and losing one of them would not leave the ninety-nine in the desert and go after the lost one until he finds it?” Obviously he is asking them as though the answer should be “Obviously, we would all do that,” but I’m not so sure the accountants and analytically minded folks would agree with that course of action. In business there are certainly times when you just have to cut bait, accept your losses, and focus on preserving your resources. If a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush, why should we risk losing the ninety-nine over one sheep? If that sheep is dumb enough to get lost in the first place, maybe this is all for the best!
But God’s plans don’t usually fit into our tidy categories. His love for us is reckless. It borders on senseless. But the same love that drives a parent to risk everything for one of their children who is in danger pushes God to do things that seem senseless in the eyes of the world. God loves you and me enough to go after us even when we are at the lowest points in our lives. He is constantly pursuing those who have time and again tried to throw their own lives away.
He is chasing after the people who long ago rejected the fact that God loves them and wants the best for them. He willingly left eternity, entered time, and
took upon Himself the suffering and punishment that was ours to bear. He opened the Gates of Heaven when we had slammed them shut. He actively chose at every moment on the Cross to remain there for our sake. It was not a plan that made any sense in the eyes of the world. It was not a plan primarily of logic, but a plan of love.
When we encounter a Gospel like this one, the only appropriate response is gratitude. We thank God for the gifts He has bestowed on us in our lives through His Church. We thank Him for those gifts by seeking to understand them better ourselves, and by sharing them generously with others. Next month we will be hosting a six-week series on the interior life put on by School of Faith. It will be an incredible opportunity for us to delve deeper into these mysteries and build up the tools we need to appreciate God’s presence in our lives. We are investing in this because we believe that it is necessary for us to grow closer to God. I ask that you please make every effort to attend the series. There is not a single person in our parish (the staff and clergy being no exception) that couldn’t stand to learn more
about prayer and how to better sit in the presence of Our Lord. May we all continue to thank God for the reckless abandon with which He loves us, and pray for the zeal to share that love with the world.