Hope in God’s Will
“Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5). Mary’s words in the Gospel for this weekend are clear. Listen for God’s command and do it. However, for the everyday Christian, carrying out Mary’s command can become a challenge of patient listening for God to speak.
During my time as a university student, I found myself often kneeling in the campus church waiting with hope that somehow God would make clear to me exactly what I was supposed to do with my life. I was ready to do whatever God told me, but I needed him to tell me! Even as I faithfully prayed each day, asking for this clarity, I never heard an answer. At least, I never heard an answer that spoke like a clear voice within the silence of my prayer. Many times, I thought that God actually didn’t have a plan for me. But as I waited impatiently, God did not leave me pathless. Instead, God guided me in subtle ways like through the words of a trusted friend or family member. Over the years, I began to recognize the quiet voice of God directing and drawing my soul into a deeper awareness of his command.
This awareness has played a central role as I have worked with other Catholics to discover their charisms using the Called and Gifted process. A charism is a gratuitous gift or spiritual gift given to all Christians by the Holy Spirit to help Christians represent Christ and be a channel of God’s goodness for people. So often, I hear people share that even though they pray and want to do God’s will, they do not have any charisms. I am reminded of how I waited to hear God’s voice day after day as I prayed in silence. It is tempting to lose sight of God’s plan for each one of us. And yet, St. Paul reminds us today “to each individual the manifestation of the Spirit is given for some benefit” (1 Corinthians 12:7). Every single person in the church is gifted to do God’s will!
How do we learn our own giftedness and God’s will for each of us in the silence? There are many writings and guides that seek to answer this question, yet I often begin with a simple ‘yes.’ When you come to church or work or home, needs are present. I don’t think there has ever been a time when I have visited a Catholic church and they have an announcement saying ‘please, we don’t need any more volunteers.’ Look in any parish bulletin and you’ll find a list of opportunities. Or just call the parish office and you’ll learn soon enough where they need help. I remind myself of my own ability to say yes, even when I feel like I don’t have time or would rather relax with a good book. Once I begin to offer myself, though, I can notice how I feel in that moment and how others around me are impacted. Here we become like the servants in the Gospel who say ‘yes’ and in turn bring forth an abundance. The servants bring to Jesus simple water, and he then changes that water into the richness of wine! In all our lives, Jesus wants to transform us and what we bring from the everyday to the abundance of God’s goodness.
In Jesus, then, we have a great opportunity for hope in God’s plan for us. As my husband kindly reminded me recently, hope has a level of uncertainty to it. We cannot know what will happen, but when we hope, we expect something good. I am reminded of Pope Francis’ call to remember our hope for this Jubilee Year. The prayer for this year captures both our hope for the greatest good, heaven, and our own transformation to become sharers of that hope with others. In the second paragraph of the Jubilee Prayer, we ask God to transform each person into a ‘tireless cultivator’. In what ways can we become cultivators of the hope of faith? In what ways can you say 'yes' today?
The Jubilee Prayer
Father in heaven,
may the faith you have given us
in your son, Jesus Christ, our brother,
and the flame of charity enkindled
in our hearts by the Holy Spirit,
reawaken in us the blessed hope
for the coming of your Kingdom.
May your grace transform us
into tireless cultivators of the seeds of the Gospel.
May those seeds transform from within both humanity and the whole cosmos
in the sure expectation
of a new heaven and a new earth,
when, with the powers of Evil vanquished,
your glory will shine eternally.
May the grace of the Jubilee
reawaken in us, Pilgrims of Hope,
a yearning for the treasures of heaven.
May that same grace spread
the joy and peace of our Redeemer
throughout the earth.
To you our God, eternally blessed,
be glory and praise for ever.
Amen