Friday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time
“How good is the good God!” As I spent time with the psalm for today, this familiar quote from St. Julie Billiart keeps reverberating in my thoughts. It is a quote of awe and wonder at the beauty that exists in creation. I am well-aware that goodness is sometimes clouded heavily by bad news seemingly around every corner–most media outlets suffer from “bad news bias” and operate under the motto “if it bleeds, it leads”. However, today I am drawn to our psalm refrain: “The Earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.” (Ps 33:5) There is beauty to be found in creation, in our relationships, in our work, in our play, in our joy, and even in our struggles.
This past May marked the 5-year anniversary of the Memorial Day tornadoes. That summer, and each one since, we planted sunflower seeds in several places around our property. Over the course of the summer and into the fall, we watched as a series of sprouts emerged and grew to beautiful sunflowers towering over struggling beds of shrubs and mulch. The beauty of the sunflowers is striking. While I reveled at their elegance, the sunflowers reveled at the beauty of the sun. Each morning, as I departed for work, the sunflowers faced the East toward the sunrise; every evening, as I returned home, they had shifted their sight to the West as the sun was approaching the horizon. “The Earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.” Exult!
In the first reading, St. Paul writes, “The message of the cross…is the power of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength” (1 Cor 1:18, 25). I continue to be reminded of God’s goodness on a regular basis.
- This past weekend, we celebrated the baptism of our sweet baby girl, Dorothy, surrounded by family and friends.
- We are blessed this year with a wonderful group of over 25 volunteers coaching our 10 Immaculate Conception Falcons youth soccer teams. Our coaches are going above and beyond, dedicating multiple hours per week volunteering to coach our young athletes from the parish and school, helping the kids to have fun, learn, and grow both athletically and as disciples of Christ–endeavoring to Think Like Jesus, Talk Like Jesus, and Act Like Jesus, both on and off the field.
- Our family had the opportunity to travel to the beach this summer for a wonderful getaway.
- The sunflowers we planted this spring grew to more than 10 feet in height this summer, a reminder to “follow every movement of the sun, and keep your eyes always turned towards our good God.” (St. Julie Billiart)
Truly, as St. Julie suggests, we should take in the lesson of the sunflower to “stay awake, for [we] know neither the day nor the hour” (Mt 25:13). In the gospel today, Jesus also warns us of the foolishness trap–ignoring the necessity to prepare ourselves for the coming of the Lord. Our gospel verse today says, “Be vigilant at all times and pray, that you may have the strength to stand before the Son of Man” (Lk 21:36). Pay attention, stay focused, love one another, prepare your hearts, bring some oil.
I am abundantly blessed to consistently be made aware of the wonders of our good God. As we prepare for this Labor Day weekend, may we acknowledge God’s goodness in our lives.
The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
For Upright is the word of the LORD,
And all his works are trustworthy.
He loves justice and right;
Of the kindness of the LORD the earth is full
The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord. (Ps 33:4-5)
Perhaps also, the sunflower looks to the sun because it is full of the goodness of the Lord. May we all rejoice, likewise, in the goodness and truth of our creation in the image and likeness of a loving, just, and merciful God. Like sunflowers grow and glow in the light of the sun, let us grow in faith and glow in the light of the Son. Amen.
Peace,
Brandon Meyer