Theme: Leaving the Cold for the Lord’s Warmth

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    Last week, we arranged for a skip from Skip It for our parking lot project. On Thursday, I waited patiently outside in the cold for the delivery. When the driver arrived, he parked, got out, and we exchanged greetings. Noticing I was standing in the chilly weather, he kindly said, “Please go back into the warmth of the church; I will unload without any issue.” I then went inside to continue my prayers and reflection and was inspired to write today's homily based on his words.
   In his reflections on the Song of Songs, St Bernard says, “The Lord’s mercy is my merit; we are never bereft of merit as long as the Lord is not bereft of mercy. For if the mercies of the Lord are many, then many are my merits.” Amen.  
   He adds: “The man who said, ‘My sin is too great to be forgiven was in error’.” Why? St Paul states in the second reading that God chose the foolish and lowly in the world to shame the strong and bring to nothing things that are, so no one might boast in God’s presence.
   Therefore, we should not condemn ourselves, as the Lord has not condemned us. We need to listen to the truck driver’s advice and move away from that cold place created by those who called us unprintable names, impoverished their citizens, forced our children into kidnapping, persuaded us to abandon the house of God, and led us to hate our families and friends.
   Now is the time, as Prophet Zephaniah states in the first reading, to “seek the Lord all you humble of the land; seek righteousness; seek humility and be protected on the Lord’s Day of anger.”
   We should not fear leaving behind that cold place of regret nor mourn the years lost to anger and unforgiveness. Those who return to the Lord are assured of His blessing. Let us humble ourselves through prayer, crave the Lord’s compassion, and worship Him while waiting for His mercy, which purifies our hearts, strengthens us to face life's challenges, and protects us from revenge against those who kept us in the cold, lied about us, betrayed us, or humiliated us – trapping us in self-pity, self-hate, and self-destruction.  
   We must let go, because the Lord’s compassion offers us heaven, comfort, success, satisfaction, wisdom, a heavenly inheritance, and a place in heaven. Yes, brothers and sisters, let us leave the cold and enter the warm sheepfold of the Lord, where He will inscribe in our hearts: Makarios.