theROCK

Built Solid & Strong

It was a black Brimnes wardrobe with 3 doors. It had a mirror mounted in the front and lots of shelves inside for storage. I was so excited to make my purchase at Ikea, deliver it to my house and prepare to put the entire wardrobe together. I opened the box, laid out all of the pieces and began the assembly process. Not too bad, I thought. I can look at the final photo and figure everything out. I mean, how tough could it be to put together?

Yeah, right. It took me three minutes to get confused. Was “A” a left side panel or right? Which screws was I supposed to use for the top? Did I attach the shelves first or last? I knew I was in over my head and reached for the instructions.

That made me think about how I assemble the days of my life. Am I simply laying out all my pieces and randomly trying to put things together? Do I know my priorities ? Do I know the steps I should follow to get things accomplished?

If only life came with instructions.

Ah…but they do. God has given us two simple instructions:

1. Love the Lord Your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind and all your strength.
2. Love your neighbor as yourself.

That’s it. The instructions are clear and easy to understand…IF we take the time to read them. So often we think we can do everything on our own. I don’t need God’s help. I can figure this out on my own. I have all the answers.

But there always comes a moment when we realize that our lives are made up of lots of screws and lots of shelves, each with different uses. If we take the time to ask for help and follow God’s instructions, there is no doubt that our lives will be built solid and strong.

Reciprocity

Reciprocity, according to the Oxford Dictionary, is the practice of exchanging things with others for mutual benefit, especially privileges granted by one country or organization to another. In all my years of studying and teaching the Catholic faith, reciprocity is a simple way of explaining the covenant we have with God since the beginning.

God told Abraham that should Abraham know, love and serve the one true God, then his descendants would number the stars. Additionally, God says that the descendants of Abraham will always be provided for with land, children, and security with the understanding that they continue to come to know, love and serve the one true God as well.

Now, as you watch the Old Testament unfold, we see our ancestors in faith struggle with keeping their end of the bargain. It is the human condition. We fall into and out of relationship with God (sin) but God always remains and patiently waits for us to unite with Him - this is faith.

The greatest calls to faith always encompasses a tragic event. The Hebrews called out to God when enslaved in Egypt. They called out when enslaved in Babylon. The Israelites called out when under the thumb of the Roman Empire. It is no different in modern times. Many churches saw filled seats the days, weeks and months following 9/11, only to find them emptying again.

Jesus reclaims and invigorates the reciprocity that exists between humanity and God, the Father and Creator - "I am the bread of life... whoever eats this bread will live forever" (John 6: 48-51). Just as faith in God saved our ancestors, faith in Jesus Christ saves us.

Reciprocity. Don't wait for the next tragic event to get you back into relationship with Jesus. Be there before it happens.