HOMILY – 3^RD SUNDAY ON ORDINARY TIME

ST. ANTHONY OF PADUA CATHOLIC CHURCH & FURMAN U.

JANUARY 24, 2010 – 8, 10, 12 NOON & 6:30PM

May the Lord Jesus give us His peace.

Timing is everything, drink it in, American Idol.

Timing is everything. In the reading from the book of Nehemiah we see God’s people gathered again, scared and yet full of hope for a new beginning. They have come back home from being held captive in Babylon, and are now gathered to hear how the community will be reorganized to begin again. Ezra the priest is laying out the future from his best sense of God’s will and the timing is everything. The people are eager to listen to him. Their response is one of the places in the bible where we get the great Amen from, after through Him with Him in Him.

The people are gathered and the law of God is read. They will follow in the new era, not apart from God’s will this time. As the law is read people begin to weep because they have not been allowed to practice their way while under arrest and away. But Nehemiah, a layman, saw how they felt and shouted, oh no! Don’t weep. Put together your best, celebrate and share. This day of our new beginning is cause for rejoicing! Timing is everything and this is our time my friends! Let us begin to serve the Lord.

Drink it in. Paul speaks to the Corinthians and they hear him say that they are one body with one Spirit, which has many parts. All the parts function according to the ONE Spirit. Drink it in. Like an engine with oil, each part lubricated with the Spirit of God, we do our part and motor toward the coming of the Kingdom of God. Some will be connecting rods, others pistons where the explosion happens, some oil pans holding the Spirit of lubrication. We all function to keep the motor of God’s will working in this world.

I think we all know what happens when we don’t put oil in the motor.

It seizes up and dies. bang bang bang, pow! No more movement.

So adding oil, keeping it at a proper level and cleaning it will be very very important. Drink it in, that Spirit of God, and chug along.

American Idol. Perhaps you have seen an episode or two of American Idol. Often the singer will have come to a place where there is “One moment in time..” or “Don’t let the sun go down on me” I liked Ruben Stoddard a lot and hoped he would win. But each had a moment in time, they drank in the possibilities and let it fly in the Spirit of the Lord. They gave their gift.

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus is that person today. He gets up in their equivalent of performance place and sings a tune that shocks the audience. He is in the synagogue and is reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah, the great coming of the Messiah text. Then, He finishes it with these words. “Today this passage is fulfilled in your hearing it.” He says, “its me. I am here. Let’s bring this to the next level. It is Jesus’ moment in time. His timing is everything. He drank from the Spirit of His Father and now He sings. The Gospel says, “All looked intently at Him.

Each one of us has been given to drink of this same Spirit of God.

Each of us has places and times where we are to perform the act God has had in His mind from our conception. Baptized, we are watered for a reason. We bring the Good news that God is calling all to Himself.

So we gather, praise and thank Him, and realize that God is giving the whole movement to us to bring forward in our time.

So we feed, shelter, teach, heal, share the Good news. We are not found in a recliner while others hurt or are lonely. We are the carriers of a song, not idols, signs! of another place, another way. Blessed vessels.

So sing! Show all what God gave you. Timing is everything so drink in His Spirit, and then shine.

It might stay a dull and confusing world, that is, until you start singing.