Posted on

Our Response to Jesus’ Unexpected Ways / Nuestra respuesta a los inesperados caminos de Jesús

Click here for daily readings

I cannot imagine what the wait for Jesus must have been like for the Israelites. A redeemer who was going to change everything for them: set them free from oppression, cast down the mighty and fill up the hungry. But we know the rest of the story, and how what people imagined was very different from how Jesus carried these things out.

In the Gospel, Simeon reveals: “Behold this child is destined for the rise and fall of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted (and you yourself a sword will pierce) so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” (Luke 2:34-35)

Simeon’s words tell us how God shows up in your life might look very different than how you imagined. The question is, when life looks different than we imagined or is not what we felt we’ve been promised, are we going to grip so tightly to our own vision of life that we lose sight of God and His perfect plan?

The Jewish people imagined being set free from Roman oppression, but Jesus came to set them free from the oppression of sin and the devil and to lead them into a life rooted in love of God and one another. Some people listened to Jesus and changed their ways, but others felt what He preached was too much, too hard and walked away.

Our hearts are revealed in how we respond to what God offers in our life, whether it looks the same or very different from what we had planned. We can choose to rise or fall in faith. Do we turn toward God and follow Him or do we turn away from Him?

The outcome is based on if we limit ourselves to see things the way we want to see them. We need to let go of long-held habits that give us a false sense of control if the Lord is calling us to change. The infinite and all-powerful God is always trying to draw something deeper out of us than we could ever imagine with our limited minds. He asks us to trust in Him.

Simeon trusted, waited and was rewarded. We don’t learn whether Simeon is surprised to meet the Messiah as a baby. We only hear how he believes that he is holding the Messiah in his arms and he is thanking God for the opportunity. We see in him and in Anna hearts totally open, ready to receive whatever answer God was going to provide to their prayers.

The more we resist and say this could not possibly be how Jesus is showing up in my life, the more we will miss the opportunity to engage, learn and become more like Him. When we challenge Him on what He is or is not providing in response to our prayers, we must not refuse to listen to His response, but instead be ready to receive Him in the most unexpected ways. 

Contact the author

No puedo imaginar cómo debió ser la espera de los israelitas por Jesús. Un redentor que iba a cambiar todo para ellos: liberarlos de la opresión, derribar a los poderosos y saciar a los hambrientos. Pero conocemos el resto de la historia y cómo lo que la gente imaginaba era muy diferente de cómo Jesús llevó a cabo estas cosas.

En el Evangelio, Simeón revela: “Este niño está destinado a ser el ascenso y la caída de muchos en Israel, y ser una señal de contradicción (y a ti mismo una espada te atravesará), para que se revelen los pensamientos de muchos corazones” (Lucas 2,34-35).

Las palabras de Simeón nos dicen que la manera en que Dios se manifiesta en tu vida puede ser muy diferente a como la imaginabas. La pregunta es, cuando la vida se ve diferente a como la imaginamos o no es lo que sentimos que se nos ha prometido, ¿nos vamos a aferrar tan fuertemente a nuestra propia visión de la vida que perdamos de vista a Dios y Su plan perfecto?

El pueblo judío se imaginaba ser liberado de la opresión romana, pero Jesús vino para liberarlos de la opresión del pecado y del diablo y guiarlos a una vida basada en el amor a Dios y a los demás. Algunas personas escucharon a Jesús y cambiaron su forma de ser, pero otras sintieron que lo que Él predicaba era demasiado duro y se alejaron.

Nuestros corazones se revelan en cómo respondemos a lo que Dios ofrece en nuestra vida, ya sea que parezca igual o muy diferente de lo que habíamos planeado. Podemos elegir crecer o caer en la fe. ¿Nos volvemos hacia Dios y lo seguimos o nos alejamos de Él?

El resultado depende de si nos limitamos a ver las cosas como queremos verlas. Necesitamos dejar de lado los hábitos arraigados que nos dan una falsa sensación de control si el Señor nos está llamando a cambiar. El Dios infinito y todopoderoso siempre está tratando de sacar algo más profundo de nosotros de lo que podríamos imaginar con nuestras mentes limitadas. Nos pide que confiemos en Él.

Simeón confió, esperó y fue recompensado. No sabemos si Simeón se sorprende al encontrarse con el Mesías cuando era un bebé. Solo escuchamos cómo cree que tiene al Mesías en sus brazos y le agradece a Dios por la oportunidad. Vemos en él y en Ana corazones totalmente abiertos, listos para recibir cualquier respuesta que Dios les dé a sus oraciones.

Mientras más nos resistamos y digamos que no es posible que Jesús se presente así en nuestras vidas, más perderemos la oportunidad de participar, aprender y llegar a ser más como Él. Cuando dudamos de lo que Él está o no está brindando en respuesta a nuestras oraciones, no debemos dejar de escuchar su respuesta, sino estar listos para recibirlo de las maneras más inesperadas.

Comunicarse con la autora

Nicole Berlucchi is a faith and family blogger (www.nicoleberlucchi.com) and Catholic blog contributor. She has worked in a number of roles in the nonprofit world, but helping people realize their vision and make an impact, seems to be her sweet spot. Nicole owns Coley B. Creative, LLC, a marketing company providing support to small businesses. She is also the author Magnify Love: Unlocking the Heart of Jesus in Your Marriage and Your Life. A native of Philadelphia, she now resides in the Nashville area with her husband, Joe, and their four children. She’s a big fan of brilliant skies, salted caramel with chocolate, books and more books. She loves sharing her journey with Jesus so that others might: Come and see.

Feature Image Credit: Jozef Janssens, art.diocesan.com/stock-photo/simon-predicts-marys-suffering-at-presentation-in-the-temple-14384/

The views and opinions expressed in the Inspiration Daily blog are solely those of the original authors and contributors. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of Diocesan, the Diocesan staff, or other contributors to this blog.

Posted on

The Good Shepherd Provides for Our Needs & Beyond
El Buen Pastor provee nuestras necesidades y mucho más

Click here for daily readings

In today’s Gospel, Jesus’ pity spills out of the Gospel and I imagine He takes our world in with a similar kind of pity. Sheep with no shepherd. But we have a Shepherd and He is teaching us to remember where to look for leadership, for answers, for satisfaction: to Him.

Sheep without a shepherd are wandering. They don’t know their way home. They roam aimlessly. They become heavy with wool so that they cannot see or move. They wander into danger, and they have no order. Jesus sees these people and thinks of shepherdless sheep. Desiring to fill the void He sees in front of Him, Jesus begins to teach the people He pities, filling them with spiritual food. When His teaching is done, He does not stop there. 

The disciples feel like He has done enough: it’s time to send the people to find food. However, Jesus does not let them. He is not willing to send them elsewhere for food. He knows a good shepherd would care for all the needs of his flock, not send them out on their own after tending to them all day. Would a good Shepherd allow his flock to wander and perhaps never find anything to eat?

Jesus desires to shepherd and nourish each of us. He wants to be the source of our food. 

So instead of sending them away searching for food, Jesus tells the disciples to see what they have: two fish and five loaves. This small portion of food is enough to feed the 5,000! Jesus takes what little we can offer and multiplies it so much so that the new amount of food exceeds the needs of the crowd. He not only feeds them, but gives them enough for future needs. 

Jesus is showing us that, with Him, we have more than we realize. We simply need to give Him the things in our life that we feel are not nearly enough to meet the task at hand and He will take those things, bless them and give us more. He will meet our need and have more waiting for the future. Jesus knows our needs. He wants us to stop looking everywhere else. He desires for us to give Him what we have and look to Him to produce everything to meet (and exceed) our needs.

We must remember that through Him all things are possible, even the impossible. He wants to be your source of life, and He wants you to trust that He can work with as little or as much as you have available to give to Him. He wants to be the source of your food, the source of your life.

Contact the author

En el Evangelio de hoy, la compasión de Jesús se desborda del Evangelio y me imagino que Él acoge nuestro mundo con un tipo de compasión semejante. Ve ovejas sin pastor. Pero tenemos un Pastor y nos está enseñando a recordar dónde buscar el liderazgo, las respuestas, y la satisfacción: en Él.

Las ovejas sin pastor están vagando. No saben el camino a casa. Vagan sin rumbo. Se vuelven tan pesadas de lana que no pueden ver ni moverse. Vagan hacia el peligro y no tienen ningún orden. Jesús ve a la gente y piensa en ovejas sin pastor. Deseando llenar el vacío que ve frente a Él, Jesús comienza a enseñar a las personas que le dan lástima, llenándolas de alimento espiritual. Cuando termina su enseñanza, no se detiene allí.

Los discípulos sienten que Él ha hecho suficiente: es hora de enviar a la gente a buscar comida. Sin embargo, Jesús no los deja. No está dispuesto a enviarlos a otro lugar para buscar comida. Jesús sabe que un buen pastor se ocuparía de todas las necesidades de su rebaño, no los dejaría solos después de haberlos cuidado todo el día. ¿Permitiría un buen pastor que su rebaño vagara y tal vez nunca encontrara nada para comer?

Jesús desea pastorear y nutrir a cada uno de nosotros. Quiere ser la fuente de nuestro alimento. Así que en lugar de enviarlos lejos en busca de comida, Jesús les dice a los discípulos que vean lo que tienen: dos peces y cinco panes. ¡Esta pequeña porción de comida es suficiente para alimentar a los 5.000! Jesús toma lo poco que podemos ofrecer y lo multiplica tanto que la nueva cantidad de comida excede las necesidades de la multitud. No solo los alimenta, sino que les da lo suficiente para sus necesidades a futuro.

Jesús nos está mostrando que, con Él, tenemos más de lo que nos damos cuenta. Simplemente tenemos que darle las cosas en nuestra vida que sentimos que no son suficientes para cumplir con la tarea en cuestión y Él tomará esas cosas, las bendecirá y nos dará más. Satisfará la necesidad y tendrá más esperando para el futuro. Jesús conoce nuestras necesidades. Quiere que dejemos de buscar satisfacerlas por todos lados. Desea que le demos lo que tenemos y que esperemos que Él produzca todo lo que satisfaga (y supere) nuestras necesidades.

Debemos recordar que a través de Él todas las cosas son posibles, incluso lo imposible. Quiere ser tu fuente de vida y quiere que confíes en que Él puede obrar con lo poco o lo mucho que tengas disponible para darle. Quiere ser la fuente de tu alimento, la fuente de tu vida.

Comunicarse con la autora

Nicole Berlucchi is a faith and family blogger (www.nicoleberlucchi.com) and Catholic blog contributor. She has worked in a number of roles in the nonprofit world, but helping people realize their vision and make an impact, seems to be her sweet spot. Nicole owns Coley B. Creative, LLC, a marketing company providing support to small businesses. She is also the author Magnify Love: Unlocking the Heart of Jesus in Your Marriage and Your Life. A native of Philadelphia, she now resides in the Nashville area with her husband, Joe, and their four children. She’s a big fan of brilliant skies, salted caramel with chocolate, books and more books. She loves sharing her journey with Jesus so that others might: Come and see.

Feature Image Credit: Pixabay, pexels.com/photo/herd-of-sheep-on-grass-field-462119/

The views and opinions expressed in the Inspiration Daily blog are solely those of the original authors and contributors. These views and opinions do not necessarily represent those of Diocesan, the Diocesan staff, or other contributors to this blog.