Isaiah 54:1-10 / Luke 7:24-30
Bad news comes in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes it's expected, and other times it comes, as the Gospel says, like a thief in the night. In a single moment our lives can go from light to night as we learn that a loved one is dead, or that we are ruined, or that we have lost everything we care for.
But what worse news could we ever hear than to have the dread last words of today's Gospel pronounced over us: "They defeated God's plan in their regard"? Just think what that means in the concrete: God loves us deeply; He has entrusted special gifts to us with which we are to build a life that can be shared with others; God had special work for us to do on this earth, and He had a special place reserved for us in his heart for all eternity. And then we defeated and frustrated God's beautiful plan for us!
How does that feel? Horrible! We mustn't let it happen! The only way to prevent it is to listen intently to what God is trying to tell us. Listen, draw courage from the fact that He still wants to talk to us, despite all our mistakes, and then do what He asks.
God lives in the eternal now, not in the past. Let Him help you create a new present to live in. It will lead to a future without end.
