NOTE: Christ in Our Neighborhood is a parish-based program consisting of small Christian communities that gather in the home weekly to prayerfully discuss the upcoming Sunday Mass readings. It’s easy to form a community and you can find out more at Christ in Our Neighborhood – The Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix (dphx.org)
This coming Sunday, we celebrate the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time. The question the Christ in Our Neighborhood reflection asks us is: Jesus speaks to us plainly: “Where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.” Does your trust in Jesus have limits?
For many of us, we’re willing to surrender 80-90 percent of our hearts to God. It’s that last little bit — that complete entrustment of our will that can be a scary step. Maybe we have trust issues or maybe we’ve experienced betrayal in the past. Maybe we worry that God won’t come through for us. And yet time and time again in Scripture, we see how God proves His love for His people. He makes Abraham, advanced in age, the father of many nations. He delivers His people out of slavery in Egypt, helping them evade the powerful forces of Pharoh. He helps David defeat Goliath. And that’s just the Old Testament! The many miracles of Jesus and His rising from the dead are incredible proofs of His love and power. He is close to the brokenhearted and hears the calls of His people.
The fact is that God always wants what is best for us, even when it doesn’t feel good. Faith is essentially trusting in God, even when we can’t see what’s next. St. Paul of the Cross, the 18th century founder of the Passionist religious congregation, offers us some wisdom on surrendering ourselves to God: “Entrust yourself entirely to God. He is a Father and a most loving Father at that, who would rather let heaven and earth collapse than abandon anyone who trusted in Him.”
The Surrender Novena is a wonderful way to grow in our ability to let go and let God. Why not give it a try today?
If you haven’t joined a Christ in Our Neighborhood small group yet, perhaps you are being called to start one yourself. Check out our website today to find out more: dphx.org/Christ-in-our-neighborhood.
Watch the video of the weekly podcast segment featuring Christ in Our Neighborhood with Bishop Dolan by clicking HERE.
Be sure to attend our Sept. 6 Morning of Reflection for all CION participants and leaders at the Diocesan Pastoral Center. You can RSVP for this free event HERE.
To sign up for our weekly Christ in Our Neighborhood newsletter that has everything you need for your next meeting, visit: https://phoenixdiocese.flocknote.com/CION
