>>A preacher was completing a temperance sermon. And with great expression he said, “If I had all the beer in the world, I would take it and throw it in the river.”

With even greater emphasis he said, “If I had all the wine in the world, I would take it and throw it in the river.”

And with even greater emphasis he said, “If I had all the whiskey in the world, I would take it and throw it in the river.”

He then sat down.

The song leader then stood very cautiously and announced with a smile, “For our closing song, let us sing hymn number 365, ‘Shall We Gather at the River.’
[laughter]

I barely got the punchline out. You know, we live in an age of instant tea, instant coffee, instant wealth or power, and instant weight loss programs. It seems that everything is instant and now. I want it now.  We’ve become an instant society. We want it all immediately.

I think sometimes we put God in the fast lane of our life. We think if God doesn’t hear our prayers right away and give us what we want right now that means God’s not listening to me.

We need to slow down this merry-go-round and realize that through our baptism that Jesus calls us to change our lifestyle and attitudes and together build a kingdom of God, despite COVID-19. To reap the peace of Christ we are to sow the justice of Christ.

This applies to all of us. Why? Because we all share in the one baptism of Jesus Christ, no matter our age. We listen in today’s gospel, if anyone wishes to be first they shall be last of all and the servant of all.

Listen to this following story, a little sparrow was lying on its back in the middle of the road with its feet straight up in the air. A fox came along and asked, “Hey little bird, why are you laying in the middle of the road with your feet straight up in the air?”

And the little bird said, “Now I’ve heard from a very reliable source that a prediction that the sky is going to fall down today. So I’m going to hold it up with my feet.”

“Oh, you are,” said the little fox. “Do you really think a little bird like you, with those tiny, skinny, little legs can hold up the whole sky?”

And the little bird responded, “One does what one can.”

One does what one can. We cannot be a community of believers who are apathetic to others. As a body of Christ, we are called to serve in the name of the Lord. We can make a contribution as disciples of Christ that no one else can make. A better world begins with us.

Have you ever considered that when God created the world, He could have done a complete job. But God didn’t. God have us an incomplete world to help us love this world back into life.

We know ourselves now as a pilgrim people and pilgrims are always on their way searching, they haven’t arrived. So, what’s our mission? To embrace life. To heal life. To share life. To love life. To forgive one another. To love this world back into life. To be a witness of the gospel in today’s world means to live in such a way that our lives would not make any sense if God did not exist.