Monthly Archives: February 2017

Today’s scripture is all about trusting in God.

In the Old Testament scripture for today we hear God, through the prophet Isaiah, assure a despondent Israel that he will never forsake or abandon them (Isaiah 49:14-15).  Isaiah testifies that God’s love for us is like a mother’s love for her child – a selfless, tender, and protective love, a love that only has the best in mind for the child.

In today’s Psalm (Psalm 62) we hear that it is only by trustfully placing ourselves in God’s hands that we will find rest, strength, safety, hope, and salvation.

In his first letter to the newly formed Christian community in Corinth, Saint Paul reminds us that trust in God as the one true judge trumps any other “worldly” judgments (1 Corinthians 4:1-5).

And in today’s gospel  (Matthew 6:24-34) – a continuation of Jesus’ great Sermon on the Mount –  Jesus teaches us that it is only by trusting in  God and “seeking  first God’s  kingdom” that we can achieve true contentment and peace.

Jesus is telling us that it is only by placing our trust in God that we can overcome the stress, anxieties, and other unnecessary preoccupations that might otherwise consume us.  With trust in God we are better able to detach ourselves from the overzealous pursuit of all those material things that we erroneously believe will bring us security and happiness.  With trust in God we become more inclined to share our belongings, our talents, and our time with those less fortunate than ourselves.  With trust in God we become more content to live more simply, with thanksgiving for the here-and-now, rather than fear for what is yet to come.  With trust in God we become more inclined to do just as Jesus tells us – to store up those heavenly treasures that last forever rather than those earthly treasures that decay and disintegrate.  And with trust in God we will more easily live in conformance with the wisdom of the beatitudes that Jesus emphasized at the very beginning of his Sermon – a wisdom that steers us on our journey to God.

If we can put God and the things of his Kingdom first in our lives, if we can place all our trust in our loving and tender “Mother” God, then – just as Jesus assures us – “everything we need will be given to us”.  So, with Lent upon us, we go forward – turning ourselves back to God, placing our trust in God, and surrendering our lives to God.