I need some volunteers. Some kids to come up. I have a rose for you to give to someone in your family, but be careful these roses still have the thorns on them. [I give a thorned rose to each kid]. OK, you can go. Oh wait before you go there’s one more thing. [I snip off the flowered head of each stem.] Ok, now you can go back to your pew and give it to someone in your family.
Now, I am not trying to be like Morticia Adams from the old TV show: THE ADAMS FAMILY, but too often we want all thing to be nice, and pretty and neat. But life is not like that.
Did you know that roses actually grow with these really sharp thorns on the stem? Florists cut those off before they sell them. No don’t get me wrong. I enjoy roses, but too often we forget to be thankful for the thorns in our lives.
Most of us, are good at thanking God for the good things that happen and we never question the good things, but when bad things happen, boy we ask lots of questions . . . to God. [Shaking my fist to heaven.] “Why this?” “How could you do that to me?” “God, where are you?”
Think of what has happened to you lately, or to someone you love . . .
-that pain
-the bad news you’ve received
-the precious thing that got broken
Or around us . . .
-the accident of the teenagers crossing Hwy 69 last week
-the building that collapse in Florida that killed so many people
-the fighting that continues in Myanmar, Afghanistan, Yemen
In the second reading Paul talks about a thorn in his side. We have NO idea what his thorn was.
Maybe a physical ailment? Maybe an addiction or a bad habit? Maybe it’s sexual? Maybe it’s a stutter, a limp, bad hearing? Or maybe it’s a person, or people, who constantly criticize him.
We don’t know.
What we do know that WE ALL HAVE A THORN. Maybe it’s not in your side . . . maybe it’s in your knees, or your head or your heart - because of that great sadness you carry.
I carry many thorns. I had a big one this past week. One of my biggest thorns is fearing that I will be a disappointment . . . to you, to myself, to God. You see, this week I was informed that the buyers of South pulled out of the deal. That was always a possibility, as we tried to tell you.
The rising cost of material put their cost out of reach for their budget . . . and they pulled out.
I know that it’s not my fault. I know that this was always a possibility. And this was always a group decision, a group effort . . . but still I felt like a disappointment.
I told the Pastoral Council and Staff in an emergency Zoom meeting on the night I got the news. You know . . . you have an incredible Pastoral Council and Staff. We talked, we prayed and we made some decisions . . . that this just a bump in the road. It is not the end of the story. Our focus is too grow in our oneness. To plan for the future of the Catholic Church in this area.
And after the meeting, I received SO MANY calls, and texts and email from the Council members and staff . . . reminding me of our goodness, our faith, our trust.
You have a great Pastoral Council and staff.
And then the very NEXT DAY, after the sad day . . . I received notice that we have a few other groups that are interested in buying South. Can you believe it? Nothing is settled yet. But as I am “whining” about the thorn I am carrying, thinking about myself . . . it is the group that reminds me that this will be OK. That God has bigger, better plans for this parish, for me, for you.
So whatever thorns you are experiencing, remember that you do not have to endure it alone.
There is the community, the family of God ready to catch you and remind that this too shall pass and that the thorns in our lives remind us to put our trust in God.