What You Do With What You Have

Turn to the person next to you and take turns telling each other: “You will be a saint”… Go ahead and tell each other (WAIT for people to finish)…

How does it feel to be told that you are going to be a saint? For some – you may have felt glad - but for others – it might be quite an uncomfortable thought and feeling and so you might have thought “Me, a Saint?” - but that is our calling – to be a saint.

Being a saint is the ordinary goal of the Christian life. French Catholic novelist Leon Bloy said: "The only real sadness, the only real failure, the only great tragedy in life, is not to become a saint."In other words: The only real sadness is not to be the person God wants us to be.  To be a saint... to be holy is to fulfill the will of God… for our lives…

If you really think about it - Only perfect people – only saints can go to heaven… For most of us – when we die- we will not be perfect – and so we will not go straight to heaven - but God loves us so much – we will be purified in Purgatory to prepare us for heaven…our true home… so we can see God face to face…

As we reach the end of the liturgical year - in fact, we will celebrate the Feast of our Lord Jesus Christ the King next Sunday - the readings today and during the past few weeks remind us of the end of our earthly lives - be it the end of the world, the final coming of Christ or our own individual death - when we will be judged as to what we have done with our lives - what we have done with what God has given us.

The Gospel reminds us that God entrusts each of us with his gifts and grace and he gives each of us a particular work – unique for each of us … in our section of the world – in our particular times – and so we are responsible to God for what He has given us.  So, what is your unique mission in life?

Admittedly - we all do not have the same “talents” – so to speak… we were not given the same gifts and we were not given the same amount of gifts… but it does not mean God has favoritism. He loves us all equally.

Yes - some people have a lot more ability than others. Some people have been given a lot more opportunity than others. Some have more physical beauty than others…Some people have a lot more money than others. All of us would probably like to have more than what we have. But, the important question is this: What are we doing with what we have, be it much or be it little?

And that is how our Lord will judge you and me… based not simply on what we accomplished, but we will be judged based on what we accomplished with what we had or had been given… again, be it much or be it little.

To those who are rich or powerful or those who have more abilities or more beautiful physical attributes or given more opportunities than others – including spiritual gifts - Before you feel so proud or before you look down on others – Remember this: “Much more has been given to you, much more is expected of you…”

Stewardship is not only in terms of time, talent and treasure. Stewardship is also about sharing our faith which is also a gift from God entrusted to us… for us to share our faith.

With all the violence and all kinds of crises in the world – plus also our own personal and family problems - Is there hope for the future – Is there hope for humanity? And what will this future be like? The late Pope Benedict XVI addressed this question and he said: “Christ is our future….. only in Christ can humanity find redemption and hope.”

It means - it is urgent that we proclaim the promise of life in Christ Jesus, Who is our Hope.

The greatest gift we can give our children - our loved ones and others - is a Life in Christ… so that with a personal relationship with Christ – others will also see and value things in this world in right perspective…what really matters…

… what life is all about…and therefore that they will also find joy, peace and hope… regardless of the circumstances they may find themselves in.

Saint Mother Teresa said: “Jesus said: I am the truth.”  And it is your duty and mine to speak the truth.  Then it is up to the person who hears it whether to accept or reject it.” … In other words: We have the obligation to speak the Truth but we do not have to convince anyone… We just have to do our part.

People are so uncomfortable sharing their faith because they are worried that they will fail. Admittedly - we know - that often - people do not accept the gospel truth and values… but we should not feel that we have failed when people do not accept the gospel values, because – actually - it is only through God's grace, only by the power of the Holy Spirit – and NOT through our own efforts, that someone may convert and be saved… BUT, we are called to do our part and cooperate with the grace of God; we are called to participate in the saving mission of Christ…

St Mother Teresa said: We are called not to be successful but we are called to be faithful… - even by just simply sharing our faith and giving someone - something to think about - (planting a seed, so to speak), we may help change the course of their lives – and to bring them one step closer to knowing the living God.

We do not have to talk about doctrines.  We do not need to be theologians. We do not have to re-tell the entire story of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.

The perfect strategy can be summed up in two simple words: “Be yourself”. It means simply talk about your own experiences of God’s love… how good the Lord has been to you. Talk about how having Christ in your life made a difference in your way of life… as a source of true happiness, peace, joy and hope and courage and strength. For example, you can share an insight you received in prayer or at Mass. Talk about an answered prayer or an unexpected little miracle.

The Gospel speaks about investing our talents – investing our faith –There is this principle – that our faith grows in the measure we share it…. the more we share our faith – the deeper and stronger our faith becomes.  Just as money will not grow if not invested, if it is not risked. Similarly, in the very act of sharing, our own faith grows stronger.

Yes, it is not easy to share our Christian faith in our secular and even atheistic society and times we live in. It is dangerous… a “risky business”… to share our faith.

Our faith is under constant attack from a lot of different angles… including social media. For many of us, we find ourselves defending our faith…Our society tells us to keep our faith to ourselves… to keep it private… But our Holy Father, the Pope, said: “Any tendency to treat religion – our faith - as a private matter must be resisted.”

If we keep our faith to ourselves, we will lose it…as the Gospel says: “For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

Life is not made for hoarding- accumulating treasures or wealth or knowledge or abilities just to benefit ourselves….to “get” the most out of life… Life is not for us to be just comfortable… Everything is by the grace of God and everything God has given to you and me is intended to be shared… to love people…. to be invested in people.

In Pope Francis’ Apostolic Exhortation  – The Joy of the Gospel – Evangelii Gaudium -  In response to the question - - Why do Catholics NOT share their faith and therefore why do Catholics NOT lead others to Christ? -  The Pope says:  because Catholics lack joy: because if we have joy, then no one needs to tell us to share and spread the faith, as we will do so naturally and spontaneously, the same way that we share anything that we are passionate about.

So, the question is: Are you joyful about your faith? Are you joyful being a Christian or is it a burden for you to be a Christian?

Our lives – like the Eucharist – must be blessed, broken, poured out and shared… that is how and when we will truly be happy.

 God bless…