More times then not, those who show mercy to others were in need of mercy at one time in their life and given it …..This is how God teaches us to “see” our neighbor as our self…..Then its up to us…..”For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you”

Today at Holy Mass we hear in the Gospel of Luke Jesus tell his friends the need to be merciful…What keeps us from being merciful?…At the root of our lack of mercy could very well be the fact that we never truly needed mercy ourselves…Often times, people who have experienced “their backs up against the wall” are quick to help others who experience the same thing….And if we have been fortunate enough to never have been in need of mercy…Make no mistake about it - One day we will…All of us will get old and need assistance…All of us will stand before God - Where our money and comfort means nothing….Its then that we will ask for mercy……Jesus today tells us how to prepare for that moment….”For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you”…How we treat people matters!…..If we ignore those in need now, the Lord will ignore us when we are in need…..”Whatever you do to the least, you did for me”

“Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life; you have the words of everlasting life”

It is very easy to take for granted our gifts…Our family, Our intelligence, Our wealth…..Many times its not until everything has been taken from us do we finally have “eyes to see” those around us who suffer - Who have not been given what we have been given…..Gifted people who have gone through unexpected hardship in life usually change radically I have found…..People who have survived cancer…People who have had to declare bankruptcy due to a failed business….People who have lost a child or a spouse at a young age….Its not until we feel our humanity…Its not until many times we are brought to our knees……That we are taught by the Lord to “see” others…..I have read extensively about the lives of the saints…And there are many common themes to be found in their lives…One of those themes is the fact that many of the saints lost a parent or both of their parents when they were young…This event I believe drove them to cling to God in a radical way…..Mother Teresa was one of those saints…Many people many not know that Mother Teresa as a young girl in Albania was very rich….She had a very comfortable life…At the age of nine, her father was murdered…And her family went from being very rich, to being very poor…..I believe the impact of her father’s murder and the experience of going from being very rich to becoming poor shaped Mother Teresa and drove her to allow God to use her in the way he did…..God works in mysterious ways!….This is why we must learn to “trust the process”…..Even if the events in our life can at times be very painful and hard…..My father came from a large extended family…He always would say that the poor are the only ones who have many children…..You would think it would be the opposite…You would think rich people, who could afford children would have them…Sadly that is not the case many times…When we grow accustom to a comfortable life, never having to make sacrifices, we are reluctant to sacrifice by having children…The poor however are used to making sacrifices, they live and breath this kind of life…So having children does not phase them….Years ago the fence in my backyard was in need of repair…I hired a construction company to repair it…They sent this man who was from Central America to take care of the job…As he was working, I was talking to him…This man had five children…..Clearly he was not rich, yet he had a big family….How many American families can afford to have large families and do not?…Again, more times then not, we need to experience what it “feels like” to need mercy before we give mercy to others….God shapes us in mysterious ways…This is why we must learn to trust him - God knows what he is doing!

“Forgive and you will be forgiven. Give and gifts will be given to you; a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing, will be poured into your lap.”

Today in the gospel, we are told that if we expect God to be merciful to us, we must show others mercy….Each of us one day will be in need of mercy - Don’t deceive yourself into thinking that somehow you are exempt from this reality…..”The measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you”…..We many not be in need of mercy right now - But one day, we all will…..Mother Teresa always would tell her sisters…”When I die, the poor will defend me when I stand before Christ”…..This is so very true, if we are good to the poor in the here and now…..And if by chance you are experiencing a hard time at present moment, know that God is forming you…God wastes nothing!….And when you “come out the other side” of your hard time…My bet is you will look at others with more compassion and be more willing to “extend a hand” in giving assistance…..The saints were not born saints…They lived through the fire of this life, only to be transformed by the fire….More times then not, those who show mercy to others were in need of mercy at one time in their life and given it …..This is how God teaches us to “see” our neighbor as our self…..Then its up to us…..”For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you”