Thursday of the Fifth Week of Lent 2019

In the first reading we hear, "When (emphasis mine) Abram prostrated himself, God spoke to him..." And, without going into all the specific promises God made to Abram, in the end, Abram was promised abundance beyond his wildest imagination. And what did God ask from Abram in return? A promise for Abraham and his descendants to keep God's covenant – to listen to Him and Him alone. We are part of this covenant too and Lent is a wonderful time to reflect on our response to the promise God asks of us.

In this reading, God's promise is sandwiched between the action required of Abram and of us to receive this abundance. Listen. Listen to God and God alone. Let God provide for us the abundance that He desires to give us. I believe it is important for us to recognize that God does not hold out on us if we choose not to listen. It is we who hold out on ourselves. It is not that we intentionally tell God we're not interested. Our choice not to listen is more about our belief that we can handle things ourselves. It doesn't even occur to us most times to prostrate or humble ourselves before our God and let his abundant love flow over us and heal us.

During these next ten days, let’s spend some time basking in God’s abundant love by opening our hearts and listening. Let's resist the temptation to take charge and allow God to do what He longs to do for each of us. Let us renew our commitment to God's covenant, prostrate ourselves to our loving God and allow him to share abundance with us beyond our imagination.