THE CHRISTIAN LIFE
Tuesday of the Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time
My dear encountered couples:
Just when everything is going just fine in your life something happens to upset it. You are getting along really well with your relatives and friends, your financial situation is such that you can relax, your car is purring right along, there are worthwhile things to watch on TV, and your dog hasn’t chewed up any of your socks or underwear for months. Life is wonderful. Then it happens.
A disagreement, an argument, an upsetting situation develops with not only your favorite relative, but with your best friend. A sickness happens, or a house repair that takes all your savings. Your car won’t start, on TV it’s all reruns or a series of some really dumb things. And the dog? You don’t want to know. Your life is suddenly, no longer wonderful. Welcome to the real world.
That might sound a bit cynical, but life, Christian life especially is not easy. If it were, Christ would not have had it so hard. He would not have had to die on the cross. When we talk about living a Christian life, we are talking about a life like that of Christ. And we know his life was not full of fun and games. He had plenty of trouble with his relatives and friends. From infancy on he couldn’t be sure whether he’d still be alive come the next day or not. People were often out to get him. Let us listen to what Jesus predicted about the lives of those who want to enter through the gate into heaven.
“Enter through the narrow gate. The gate that leads to damnation is wide, the road is clear, and many choose to travel it. But how narrow is the gate that leads to life, how rough the road, and how few there are who find it!” Does that scare you? It shouldn’t if you are trying to lead a Christian life. Remember, the life of Christ had a happy ending. So will the lives of every loving Christian. You can bet on it!
