A priest flew thousands of miles to spent a month with the community of Mother Teresa in Calcutta, India. He was in a stage of discernment for God’s further purpose in his priestly life. On the first morning that he met Mother Teresa, the pious nun asked him, “What do you want me to pray for? “ The priest answered, “Pray that I have clarity.”
She said no. That was that.
When the priest asked why, she announced that clarity was the last thing he was clinging to and had to let go of. The priest commented, “But Mother, you had always seemed to have the clarity I longed for. Mother Teresa laughed: “I have never had clarity; what I’ve always had is trust. So I will pray that you trust.”
Mother Teresa is right. At times what we really need is the grace to trust because there are many things that we are unsure of in this life, and that we can never see. We need faith because as St. Paul tells us in his Letter to the Hebrews in this Sunday’s Second Reading, “Faith is confident assurance concerning what we hope for, and conviction about things we do not see.”
I, myself, needs this “inexhaustible treasure” that Jesus in today’s Gospel is referring to. You see, I have always wanted to go to the countries of Central America to see the places of origin of many of my Hispanic parishioners. This summer, the opportunity has come through; I will be going to Guatemala and El Salvador. But inside me is still this unsettling anxiety of traveling for the first time to these countries. And so, I have to let go of this anxiety and entrust the whole trip to God, knowing that my hosts will take good care of me.
Indeed, faith is the “inexhaustible treasure” we need to carry in our journeys of life. Many of us possess a lot of treasures in this life such family, home, community, friendship, integrity. These are good, but they are nonetheless exhaustible. What God offers us is an inexhaustible treasure of faith and life in his Son, Jesus.
A good Christian steward knows what he or she needs to manage his or her life. He or she must live armed with knowledge, skills, and virtues. However, for God the most important possession to deal with vicissitudes of life is faith in Him through a constant consecration or entrustment of one’s life to his Son, Jesus, in prayer. A daily period of contemplative prayer, a heart-felt recitation of the Holy Rosary, a walk in the night in the awesome presence of God, a quiet time before the Blessed Sacrament, or a conscious and full participation in the celebration of Mass would have tremendous effect on living life in peace and freedom despite its sorrows and difficulties.
As we spend the rest of summer, may we continue to grow this inexhaustible treasure in our hearts. May we carry this gift of faith wherever we are, wherever we go, and whatever we do. Amen.
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Reverend Rodel G. Balagtas attended St. John Seminary in Camarillo, California and earned his Doctor of Ministry in Preaching from Aquinas Institute of Theology in St. Louis, Missouri. For twenty years, he has been in the parish ministry of large multi-cultural communities. Since 2002, he has been the pastor of Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Los Angeles. Please email Fr. Rodel at [email protected].
