The message is clear: ‘Keep your eyes on Christ!’
Sunday, Aug. 9, is the 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time. Mass readings: 1 Kings 19:9a, 11-13a; Psalm 85:9, 10, 11-12, 13-14; Romans 9:1-5; Matthew 14:22-33.
The message is clear: “Keep your eyes on Christ!”
“Jesus made the disciples get into a boat and precede him to the other side, while he … went up on the mountain by himself to pray.” Jesus, in drawing back from his disciples, exhibits the mysterious truth that God sometimes seems to hide his face.
“Meanwhile, the boat, already a few miles offshore, was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it.” To the degree that we do not see the Lord, we will be anxious about many things. In the perceived absence of God, fears increase.
“During the fourth watch of the night, he came toward them walking on the sea … they were terrified. … Jesus spoke to them, ‘Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.’” The Lord asks them to choose: Either focus on the storm or focus on him. He is not just telling them not to be afraid. He is saying, “It is I;
