I Will Be Wth You

 



Today we have a guest blogger, Arlene Muller. Arlene B. Muller, OSF, is a Professed Secular Franciscan, lector & Extraordinary Minister at St. Pancras Church, Member of St. Margaret's Choir, and Itinerant Speech/language Therapist.

The scripture readings can be found at http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/071719.cfm

In today's first reading from Exodus Moses encounters the LORD for the first time in the burning bush & receives the call from God to go to Pharaoh & lead the Israelites out of Egypt.

Moses immediately questions God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh & lead the children out of Egypt?" And God responds "I will be with you...."

God did not answer Moses in what I would consider the expected way. I think Moses, like me and, I would assume, like most people, was looking for God to tell him what talent or ability or skill or experience, etc., would QUALIFY him to do this mission & give him some affirmation to give him confidence in himself, like "I've seen that you are a good leader". I think that in a similar situation I would look for affirmation of the qualities God or anyone else would see in me to give me confidence in my ability to do whatever job it mission it is.

Instead God's response was "I will be with you." Of course, what we need most of all in our lives, especially in a mission, & especially in a difficult, challenging mission, usually something we either have never done before or something similar to what we have tried to do before but failed, is God's Presence with us to help us. And Scripture is full of examples of God promising to be with us, usually with an admonition not to be afraid. (Some have suggested 365 examples, one for each day of the year.)

Here God is telling us that He has not necessarily called us because of something in us and that it is not because of something in us that qualifies us that will make us successful in performing what He has called us to do. Rather, it is His PRESENCE with us, always helping us, always guiding us, and always giving us what we need when we ask Him and rely on Him, that will cause us to complete the mission He gave us to His satisfaction.

Here is a reminder--a humbling and trust-building reminder that God usually does not call the qualified, but instead He qualifies the called. Whether it is leading the people out of Egypt, obeying God's call to a vocation to the priesthood, diaconate, consecrated religious life, marriage and parenthood, the celibate single life, a particular career or ministry, or caring for an elderly parent, when we obey God and trust Him to be with us to help us, even though it may be very difficult at times, He can and will enable & empower us to accomplish things we would never have imagined.

Today's Gospel confirms this, because in Matthew 11:25-27 we hear Our LORD JESUS giving thanks to the Father for revealing to the childlike what He has hidden from the wise and learned. So what God looks for in us has less to do with our ability and more to do with our availability. May the LORD help us to grow in our ability to trust and rely in Him more than in ourselves.