God Will Work in and Through Us

The prophet Ezekiel is sent by God to the Israelites to try and get them to come to following God and His commandments, even though God knows ahead of time that they will not listen to Ezekiel and obey His instructions to them. Why does God even do this to Ezekiel knowing full well that the Israelites will be rebellious? For Ezekiel, it is a test of trusting God and doing what is asked of him. There is a lesson for us in this as well. Jesus goes to His native place and the people are astounded by His words and yet question from where He gets this knowledge, for they only see Jesus as how they knew Him prior to His return to them. Again, a test for us to see beyond just what we know and see God working in our midst. St. Paul talks of a “thorn in his flesh” that keeps him humble in the work that he is doing in proclaiming the Good News, even when he has asked God to take it away. God’s response to St. Paul is to not worry about his weaknesses but to know that through God’s grace, St. Paul will be strengthened and endure. Here again, we too, are affirmed of how God will work in and through us. God’s grace will be sufficient when we truly trust Him. We pray this weekend for our country to return to following the ways of God in how we live each day!
Blessings and Peace,
Fr. Fred