When Life Gives You a Curve Ball…
They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd, they opened up the roof above him. After they had broken through, they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to him, "Child, your sins are forgiven."… "I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home." He rose, picked up his mat at once, and went away in the sight of everyone. They were all astounded and glorified God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this." (Mark 2: 3-5, 11-12)
No matter how well you plan and prepare, there are things happen that beyond your control. If life gives you a curve ball, what do you do? Do you give up because you can’t handle it or do you keep playing? The four men in Mark’s Gospel story did not give up bringing the paralytic, their friend, in to see Jesus because of the crowd. However, they worked out another way to get to Jesus. They are not a quitters. Because of their faith and determination, their friend was healed and saved. Did you turn around and went home because there was no seat in the church? Did you allow the circumstances to stop you coming to Jesus? Every day, we meet all kinds of surprises and unexpected events. Most of them are of minor importance, but sometimes, they are major, or life shaking events of unpleasant nature, causing difficulties and problems. How do you handle them?
Do you throw your hands up and give up on God?
Do you become stressed?
Do you panic?
Do you get flustered?
Do you become angry?
Let us apply this Gospel passage to ourselves. It’s good to have a basic routine. Besides having a routine for our lives that enables us to meet our responsibilities, be true to our commitments and put our best foot forward each day for the Lord. Let us also be ever-willing, as were the four men in the Gospel, to adjust our routines when necessary so we can meet the demands of new situations and circumstances in our lives. And let us also be willing to take advantage of the new opportunities that present themselves amid our daily lives to give of ourselves in love and service to others. Here are few examples:
+ Use a different type of prayers offered by. If you always prayer the Rosary together, try to read the Bible instead.
+ Call your friend and pick them up to church instead of going by yourself,
+ Take a different route to your work in the morning.
+ Read spiritual book instead of Newspaper while drinking tea/coffee in the morning.
+ Invite other parishioners to join you for dinner or lunch after Mass.
+ Decide on the spur of the moment to go to a movie with your loved ones.
+ Do things that you usually do, but in a different way.
The horse is equipped for the day of battle, but victory is the LORD’s. (Proverbs 21:31)
Lord, when life gives me a curve ball, when things are falling apart! Help me not to overreact. Calm me down. Help me to understand the fact that love always involves with trust, and in YOU, JESUS, I TRUST!
May our Blessed Mother intercede for us all.
Hail Mary full of grace…
Peace in Christ,
Father Vincent-Vuong Nguyen