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19th
Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle A
Terranova
Hermitage
August 13,
2017
A Life
in Balance
By (Rev.
Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
Physical Balance
Every Monday, I
participate in a strength and balance class at our local fitness center.
This particular class
is designed especially for seniors. So,
I more than qualify!
One of the balance
exercises is to stand on one foot. We
were to concentrate on placing all of our weight on one foot – let’s say my
left foot.
Then we slowly raise
the right foot about six inches off of the floor, touching the side of our left
leg with it and draw the knee back to the right. We stand that way, with all weight on one foot
and then bring our bodies parallel to floor for about ten seconds.
To succeed in doing
this, our trainer advises us not to look at ourselves or others in the wall mirrors
or at anything in motion. Instead, we
were to keep our eyes focused on a fixed, still point on the floor.
And doing that is
very important. Keeping your eyes
focused on a fixed, still point helps you maintain your balance standing on one
foot.
Peter’s Balance in the Storm
Well, I’m obviously not
here today to lead you in exercises for physical balance.
But, I am suggesting
that my trainer’s guidance to keep our eyes focused on a fixed, still point is
also excellent spiritual guidance.
Look what happens to
Peter in today’s Gospel.
Peter steps out of
the boat to walk onto the water. At
first his eyes are on Jesus and he is okay.
But then, Peter
takes his eyes off of Jesus and focuses instead on the wind and the waves. He gets absorbed in the storm and quickly
starts to sink.
The crucial point here
is that when Peter keeps his eyes fixed on Jesus, he keeps his balance and is
dealing fine with the storm, but when he takes his eyes off of Jesus, he’s in
trouble.
Our Storms
No question we all experience storms
of some sort. No one is exempt!
For me, the one I remember very
well was the loneliness I felt when first ordained and assigned to a rural
parish 3 hours’ drive from all my friends. is when I was thirty years-old.
I had only been ordained and things
seemed to be going well, but the loneliness for a spouse and family began to
raise questions about my vocation.
Eventually things got sorted out and resolved, but wow, that was quite a
storm for almost two years.
There are lots of other possible
storms. A doctor’s report that we have
cancer, a heart attack, the death of your spouse or a child or parent, an
addiction to alcohol, drugs or pornography, the loss of a job, the break-up of
a marriage, and on and on it goes.
Our Balance in the Storms
Keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus
in these storms is crucial.
It’s similar to what my trainer
tells us to keep our physical balance. It’s what Peter needed to do when he stepped
out of the boat onto the stormy water.
We need to keep our eyes on
Jesus as our fixed or stillpoint. He
will help us to keep our spiritual balance and get through the storms.
Practically speaking, I offer
one recommendation. At the beginning of
each day, pray. It can be your own
prayer, right from your heart.
It can be a prayer you have
learned. It can be a prayer in a
prayerbook.
It can be one of the psalms or a
short passage from one of the Gospels.
It doesn’t have to be long – maybe five minutes or even less.
But every day – no exceptions –
pray in the morning. And then, from that
prayer, take one word or a phrase that you can repeat throughout the day.
For example: “Jesus, be with me.” Or, “God
of love.” Or, “Emmanuel” or what that word means: “God is with us.” Or, “Do not be afraid; I am with you.”
They are just examples. The idea is to pick a word or phrase, and
then, repeat it throughout the day – wherever you are, whatever you are doing.
Conclusion
Keeping our eyes on the Lord
keeps us balanced physical or spiritually no matter what the storm!
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