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Wednesday, September 19, 2018
Wednesday of the 24thWeek in Ordinary Time
HELPING OR HINDERING? ++++++++++++++++++++++
Ø One warm summer day a boy walking in the woods, finds the cocoon of a monarch butterfly
Ø Watches it for several hours, butterfly struggling 2 force its way thru tiny hole of cocoon’s casing
Ø But the butterfly eventually stops making progress and appears stuck
Ø So the boy decides to help the butterfly
Ø He takes a small penknife his jeans & carefully cuts away the rest of the cocoon
Ø The butterfly is now free of the cocoon, but its body is small and its wings are shriveled
Ø Boy expects any moment for the wings to enlarge & expand & butterfly will take off flying
Ø But that never happens
A LESSON LEARNED +++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Ø Boy doesn’t understand that butterfly’s struggle thru the cocoon forces fluid through its body & into the wings which gives them the stability and strength they need for the butterfly to fly
Ø Doesn’t understand butterfly’s strength & ability 2 fly come thru struggle 2 free itself
WE CAN BE LIKE THEBOY +++++++++++++++++++++++
Ø Sometimes we can be like the boy who tries to help the struggling butterfly
Ø Often we try to avoid what is painful and difficult
Ø Truth: It is in hard work & struggles we learn & become strong: mentally, spiritually, personally
THE GOSPEL LESSON ++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Ø In today’s Gospel, the people dismiss John the Baptist as too rigid
Ø Then they dismiss Jesus as being too lax
Ø But the real issue is that both John and Jesus are calling them to do some hard things & they want 2 avoid that at all costs so find fault w/ both men
Ø They end up like the butterfly –not fully developed, not real adults spiritually
CONCLUSION ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Ø Lesson is clear: We need 2 accept hard & challenging things & we’ll grow strong, able 2 fly
Ø The potential and the promise lie within us!
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