Wisdom gives us this required “sight”

Today at Holy Mass we hear in the first reading about the importance of wisdom….Wisdom is something that is misunderstood by many - It has very little to do with raw analytical intelligence as most people think it does - It also does not necessarily come to us through life experience…..Wisdom is one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit and to give a definition to it - “Wisdom: The ability to see things from God's perspective and to value spiritual and eternal things over material ones”….How does one acquire this? - Simple….Live in the state of Sacramental grace…An illiterate farmer in the middle of South America can possess true wisdom and a Harvard educated Banker in New York City can be devoid of it…..Having wisdom helps one see the world as it truly is….Through God’s eyes - Because that is reality…Sadly, the smarter we are and the more we have - The more we distort reality - We see this all around us today…..Just because we can for a very brief period of time distort reality - Does not mean it is reality…Because God is reality - He created the world and no matter what mankind does - We can not alter God’s plan - So we either “join the team” or we “get trampled under foot”….There is no way mankind can “fight against God”…Its like trying to hold back the ocean with a table spoon in your hand!…But back to wisdom - When we “see” the world though God’s len and value what God values - As the definition of wisdom describes - We “see” many of the “potholes” in life that most people fall into…And by “seeing” them - We avoid them…..For instance - Like marrying a superficial and materialistic woman - Like becoming addicted to pornography - Like chasing money and power - Like buying into materialism that is all around us…These are just a few of the “potholes” that even the smartest of people fall into and their lives are destroyed!…Authentic wisdom allows us to “see” these things for what they are as they are!…And when you live Sacramentally - Our human will is fortified to resist the temptations that far too many people fall prey too (i.e. Fortitude is another of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit)…..I have learned this by watching my own father, who lived a good and respectful life…..By watching my earthly father, the son of an Italian immigrant who worked in a one man barbershop, I learned that life has many “chapters” and also that life is NOT to be viewed in the “short term”, as many view it - Because life in many ways is a “marathon not a sprint” - And without wisdom, one will never see it that way….And if we are "blind", the likelihood of us falling into a pit is highly probable.

“Resplendent and unfading is wisdom, and she is readily perceived by those who love her, and found by those who seek her. She hastens to make herself known in anticipation of their desire; Whoever watches for her at dawn shall not be disappointed, for he shall find her sitting by his gate. For taking thought of wisdom is the perfection of prudence, and whoever for her sake keeps vigil shall quickly be free from care; because she makes her own rounds, seeking those worthy of her, and graciously appears to them in the ways, and meets them with all solicitude”

In my life I have met many different people  - I have also lived “many different lives”…..I was once “the cool kid” in high school…Voted by my class of 282 people “the class clown” - Everyone loved me and I had all kinds of friends from every “group”…I went on to college to become the “party guy” - Lived a wild life like one sees in the movies about college life - Maybe even more wild than the movies - If you can believe it…..Then I came home lost and broken because of my sins - Only to find Christ in my Catholic faith….Following my “new life with Christ” - I found that many of the “cool friends” I had wanted nothing to do with me - So a “new life” and a new chapter began………Then I worked on Wall Street and traveled for 13 years all over the United States and South America - Working with and next to wealthy bankers and brokers - These people took me to the best restaurants and when I traveled and I stayed in the best hotels….During this period of my life, I worked and served with the Missionaries of Charity (Mother Teresa’s sisters) both in America and abroad and have walked among some of the poorest people on this earth!…….Now I am married to a Haitian-American Catholic woman and have five children under 12 years old - To say life is a journey is an understatement - And my life is not done!…….I say all this because I have “lived many lives”…..And my experiences have given me prospective - But not necessary wisdom, which was a theme today in the readings from Sunday Mass….As I have stated earlier in this reflection…“Wisdom is the ability to see things from God's perspective and to value spiritual and eternal things over material ones”…….Seeing the world “through God’s prospective” has NOTHING to do with our experiences - It has EVERYTHING to do with Sacramental grace…And to obtain this grace is rather easy - It also is FREE…Yet most people refuse it…What is the obstacle that prevents us from having this grace?….By the way, this includes many Catholics - We REFUSE to confess our sins to a Catholic Priest…By refusing to confess our sins - We create a barrier between us and Jesus - That means if we are not formed (as I was not at one time in my life) and we receive the Blessed Sacrament, while living in objective mortal sin - We are limiting the grace of God that COULD BE penetrating our soul….Its like putting up an umbrella in the rain - The rain is falling from the sky in buckets but we are not “feeling” the rain on our face because of the umbrella….Sacramental grace is what “opens us up” to wisdom (a gift of the Holy Spirit) and in order to have a “good” and healthy life - We need wisdom!!!….The number of people who destroy themselves, who do not possess wisdom is to numerous to count….And again - Just because we have “lived” a long time and experienced many different things does not mean we have true wisdom…Wisdom is like all good things, it is a gift from God…And when we have it - We are equip to “tackle the world”….And if we do not have wisdom - Watch out……The “traps” of life are many and in order to “see” them we need to see as God sees - Wisdom gives us this required “sight”…….JMJ

“Stay awake and be ready! For you do not know on what day your Lord will come.