Homily: October 30, 2022, Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time.

 Today’s first reading begins with this, “Before the Lord the whole universe is as a grain from a balance or a drop of morning dew come down upon the earth.”

During my personal prayer time, I often tell the Lord all my worries and anxieties, the stress from ministry, the financial burdens of the parish and so on. Sometimes I grumble, sometimes I am angry, sometimes I am so tired, I fall asleep while complaining to the Lord. So if you ever find me asleep and snoring in front of the tabernacle, please don’t laugh, just pretend you didn’t see me.

And after all my lamentations, I always find consolation from a deep realization of the immense breadth, width, greatness and love of God. Our God is just so BIG.

To the God who created this vast universe, millions of stars, the faithful sun, the comforting moon, and this wounded earth… my worries and anxieties are nothing. He has everything under control, if I let Him.

Our big God loves, feels for and is attentive to every little one of His creation. He even has a plan for each of His created beings.

The mighty One who created me has a plan for me. The same mighty One who created you has a plan for you too. He has a wonderful plan for each one of us, and for all of us as one people. 

Look at all of us here at St. Ambrose. From different corners of the world, with different pasts and different expectations of the future and yet, we congregate in this same place at this same present time to worship the same great God. This itself is miraculous. God brought us together, surely there is a purpose. He has a bigger plan for us, He wants something to be accomplished through St. Ambrose, through each of us. Don’t you think so?

I do.

But exactly what is it that God wants from each of us, and from all of us? We will need to ask and listen to Him, through His word, His holy inspirations and maybe through our mutual interactions and sharing as well.

The second reading says, “our God may make you worthy of his calling and powerfully bring to fulfillment every good purpose and every effort of faith.”

We may not feel worthy of accomplishing anything big for God, we may not feel competent or capable. From the moment I was told about my transfer to St. Ambrose and now sixteen months into this beautiful community, I still feel myself inadequate and unworthy, but I will not deny or reject God’s plan and purpose for me and for the parish.

He will make us worthy. He will ‘powerfully’ bring the purpose to its fulfillment. What should we do then? How should we respond?

I grew up in a small farm of 8 acres. Farming was the only source of income for our big family. There were 11 of us, including my grandparents. A farmer’s life in India is very different from that in the USA. Our farmlands are not insured and there is no support from the government. 

When natural disasters strike, the farmers themselves would have to bear the loss. There were some years when the long and hot summer dried up most of our crops. We had to replant the cardamom plants which took another three years to grow and bear fruits. And some years the heavy monsoon rains flooded our farms and drowned all our crops. Again, we would start all over and wait for the time to harvest.

The waiting time was most difficult because there was no income. We had to be prudent in our spending during those times. My father always remained calm and confident despite the dire situation, because he trusted deeply in God’s providence and always assured us that God will not abandon us. My family would pray together in the morning and in the evening, completely surrendering to God and trusting in Him.

So our response should be to surrender and trust. We see our troubles, but God sees our faith, even if a little. With that little faith in Him, God can do wonders.

Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector, hated by his own people. Clearly, he had few friends if any at all, because he trusted no one, and no one trusted him. He might not even be welcomed by his own family. He found security in his possession and wealth. He had to provide for himself.

But today’s gospel text says, “he was seeking to see who Jesus was.” No one was letting him see Jesus, he was too short and they couldn’t care less but he was eager enough to do an unusual thing, he climbed a sycamore tree! What happened next was also unusual and unexpected, Jesus called out to Zaccheus and invited Himself to a chief tax collector’s house! A holy man going to a sinful man’s house.

Note that Jesus had intended to only pass through Jerico initially, but now he has invited himself to stay with Zaccheus, someone despised by society.

Note also that just before this incident, in Luke 18:18-30, a rich man had asked Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life, but he went away sad because he could not give up his wealth to follow Jesus. Jesus too was sad.

But here we see Zaccheus offering to give half of his possessions to the poor, without being asked. He trusted Jesus more than his possessions. He treasured Jesus’ friendship more than his wealth.

His response was what Jesus had proposed to the rich man in Luke 18. Zaccheus was lost but now received salvation, fulfilling Jesus’ mission “to seek and to save what was lost.” So both were happy!

All thanks to the sycamore tree. There is a quote, “Long before Zaccheus couldn’t see Jesus, the tree was planted to meet his need”. God provides.

Nothing is coincidental. There is a purpose to all that has happened in our lives. If we want to know and fulfil that purpose, seek the One who planned it.

You don’t have to climb a tree. Long before you thought of Jesus, this church was built to meet your needs. God provides.

Jesus is inviting Himself into your heart too, would you welcome Him? Would you also give up half of your preoccupations to follow Jesus daily? Do you trust Him and treasure Him more than what you have now?

If you do, you will be freed from your anxieties and worries. God is bigger than all these. Trust Him. God provides.

Amen