Believe, Even in the Face of the Impossible!

We are to have a faith that believes in the resurrection even in the face of the impossible.  When Abraham was commanded by God to offer his son Isaac as an offering, he was asked the impossible.  He was to believe that he would be the father of many nations even with his true heir dead, the one in whom the promised was to be fulfilled.  The apostles were asked to have the same type of faith, that even though Jesus was dying on a cross, they too were to believe in the promise of eternal life.

Both Abraham and the Apostles received many signs before hand to continue to trust God even when He would eventually ask for the impossible or to ask for something we thought He would never ask.

In Abraham’s case God asked for his son, a son whom he waited to have with Sarah, a son he thought would never come, and yet, through the impossible God granted a child to Abraham and Sarah.  Abraham saw all the wonders of God, taking him from his father’s house and leading him to a good place, the saving of Lot and his family from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, speaking to God face to face, and in hearing his voice.  The apostles also witnessed over and over again the power and glory of God, they saw dead men rise, i.e. Lazarus, they saw cripples get up and walk, they saw 5,000 fed with food for only a dozen, they saw the worst of sinners repent and be converted.  In today’s Gospel they even witnessed a glimpse of the resurrected Jesus in the Transfiguration.

All of this was given to Abraham and the Apostles so that their belief would be strengthened as well as their relationship with God, so that they would trust Him no matter what.  Well, we know that they did trust God, maybe with some questions asked and mistakes made along the way, yet, they continued to believe, and even though there would be death, Isaac to be offered and Jesus to be offered on the cross that God would still keep his promises, i.e. Isaac would be spared and Jesus would resurrect.

What remains for us is the question of our faith, “do we continue to believe that God will work out the good for those who love Him.” (Rom 8:28).  I have come to notice that in this life we humans can change our moods and dispositions in an instant, we can go from being trusting, believing, and brave, to being worried, scared, and anxious to the point of becoming sick upon hearing bad news either about ourselves or others.  For Abraham and for the Apostles they did hear bad news (or at least from their point of view on first hearing ti), for Abraham it was about Isaac, for the Apostles it was about Jesus being arrested and put to death and also for almost all of them their own martyrdoms.  Did Abraham and the Apostles forget so quickly what God had done for them that He would abandon them?  What about us?  What do we do with all the good God has given us; do we forget it when something bad or unfortunate occurs?  To be fair we are all in the same boat, all of us tend to forget the good God has done in our lives when we hear the initial bad news, but when we have a chance to calm ourselves and begin to pray with an open heart we come back to our faith, that stronghold and anchor that keeps us connected to Christ.

Jesus has given us all “transfigurative” moments if you will, so that our faith will remain strong even under the toughest trials and tribulations.  God has blessed each and every one of us just as He did Abraham, since as Paul tells us we are children of Abraham since we are of that great nation and multitude which are his offspring through faith.  He has also blessed us as He did Apostles in our baptism and all throughout our lives; we just need to remind ourselves of all of those blessings.

The blessings of God ring out in eternity since His blessings even overcome death as the Apostles were able to stand tall in front of their executioners, not of their own accord, but by the grace given to them by God.

For our reflection this week when we pray try to recall all the great blessings you have been given in your life and to praise and thank God for them, because in those blessings we get a little taste of heaven as did the Apostles on Mt. Tabor but we also receive strength for the journey of life, I pray it is a blessed journey for all, God bless you, FJ