[1]Late one
night, a burglar broke into a house he thought was empty. He tiptoed through
the living room but suddenly he froze in his tracks when he heard a loud voice
say; “Jesus is watching you.”
Silence returned to the house, so the burglar crept forward again. “Jesus is watching you.” the voice boomed again. The burglar stopped dead in his tracks. Frightened,
he frantically looked all around the room. There in a dark corner, he spotted a
bird cage and, in the cage, was a parrot. He asked the parrot: “Was that you
who said, Jesus is watching me?” “Yes,” said
the parrot. The burglar breathed a sigh
of relief. Then asked the parrot:
“What’s your name?” “Clarence,” said the
bird. “That’s a dumb name for a
parrot. What idiot named you Clarence?” The parrot said, “The same idiot who named
the Pit-bull Jesus.”
An old joke that rings of the
strong words Amos used to address and chide those who obey the law by doing
only what is necessary, rather than taking on the mind and heart of God. These merchants just can’t wait for the feast
day to pass, so they can get back to selling, manipulating the scales, and
cheating the poor. God is watching and “never
will [he] forget a thing they have done!” (Am 4:7) They obey only to serve themselves, not God.
“Jesus is watching you” is
occasionally used as a motivating statement to keep young people on the right
path. We may even use it on ourselves,
in times of temptation, as a motivator for our own choices. Unfortunately, this is usually a short-term motivator,
as the world presses on us with images and slogans perpetuating values of wealth,
success, beauty, popularity, and anything else we feel we deserve. After all the world wants us to believe it’s
all about me. Or… in an effort to protect our own interests, reputation, or standard
of living, we act without prudence, like the Steward in today’s Gospel, whose
focus is on the short-term gains versus long-term growth. It’s only once he is dismissed, that he
realizes his error in trusting his own talents for short-term gain that it can’t
bring him true and lasting rewards. In a
life course correction, he rewrites the debtor’s notes, essentially giving up his
commission, that he is commended by the Master and gains the opportunity to be
welcomed the other debtors.
To help us explore the path to long-term
growth let’s start with the question, “Who or What is our master?” Who or What dominates our mind, our
heart? What are my most important
values? The things we are willing to
live and die for? In my many years of
facilitating groups, when it comes to naming values, the top two are very
consistent. What do you think they are?
… (God & Family). When asked in a
church environment, 99% of the time God tops the list, yet in the world, we seem
to struggle to find this value lived because other people and things become our
masters.
Consider our electronic devices,
they were invented to help us master our lives; instead these devices have
mastered our attention. iPhone, iPad, laptops,
gaming counsels, Blueray, Bluetooth… it’s to the point I don’t know if the
person next to me is talking to me or on the phone?! We claim to be more connected, yet seem to be
increasingly disconnected, distracted from to the important things in
life? Satan uses worldly things to divide;
divide friends, family, even nations.
This separatist approach destroys the “unity of life” God desires and creates a modern
madness leaving us feeling distant, detached and often very alone. There are disciplines and practices we must
abide by if we are to walk faithfully along the path to salvation, fulfill our
destiny, and experience the lasting joy God desires for us.
How do we do this when worldly
allurements and distractions are so powerful?
Scripture tells us we can’t serve both God and worldly gain
(mammon). Choose one master, God! Infuse God into every aspect of your
life. Turn everything we do into a
prayer, an offering to God. Like
athletes who discipline themselves to develop positive habits, make right
choices to keep them eligible to play, and practice consistently training their
mind and body to perform at its peak.
This
is why we gather here each week at this Eucharistic celebration—to be nourished
and to nourish others. It was the Jesuit
theologian Robert Taft who said that the purpose of Eucharist is not to only
change bread and wine, but to change you and me—for through Eucharist it is we who
are to become Christ for others. We must be wise to the way of the world in our
daily lives, and let God be our only Master.
“Jesus is watching you” and challenging us to be good
stewards of the gifts we have received, not sprinting for a short-term gain,
but running a marathon, on the long road of our spiritual journey to an eternal
reward.
[1] New American Bible, Saint Joseph Edition ©
1986. Scriptures: Am 8:4-7; 8-10; 1Tm 2:1-8; Lk 16:1-13.
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