Ascension : News From The Grotto - Thought For The Week
Submitted by The Islander (Shari Parkhill) 27.09.2007 (Article Archived on 11.10.2007)

While going over the readings for this week, which all centre around the concept that God is the Lord of the oppressed, a line in the first reading from the prophet Amos stood out to me.

He is talking about how the greedy scheme to make money from the poor, and at the end, he simply states that the Lord says:  “Never will I forget a single thing you have done”.

This could be a worrisome thought for all of us.  I’m certain that all of us have done things in our past that at the very least, we are not proud of.  In anger, pain, loneliness, disappointment or despair, we have probably all said or done something that we wish we could take back.  Have we uttered a word or been guilty of a deed that might have caused another pain or embarrassment, fear or upset?  I have to be honest and admit that no matter how hard I might try to be a good Christian, I know that I have slipped at times.

But aren’t we taught that God will forgive us for whatever we may have done, so long as we are truly repentant?  Of course He will, but do we expect Him to forget our misdeeds?  That would be a bit much to expect.  Do we forget the hurts that others inflict on us?  Rarely; we might understand, forgive even, but we rarely forget.  It’s a good life lesson, several lessons actually.  It teaches us how actions such as those we have been subjected to can and will hurt others, and it also teaches us, hopefully, to avoid putting ourselves in a similar position in the future.  Sort of the Golden Rule and self-preservation all rolled into one.  We all need forgiveness, but we all need to protect ourselves as well.

Father Norris raised an interesting point last week while talking about forgiveness.  We can offer forgiveness to someone who has hurt us in some way, but we can’t force it on them.  If they don’t want it, then that is their choice.  If this happens it is time to understand, and then to put it behind us.  It was an interesting point, one that I hadn’t fully understood before.  A very simple, but powerful concept, and an understanding that could bring peace and closure to a lot of wounded souls.

Amos’ admonition that the Lord remembers all that we do is a powerful reminder that living our life of faith to the fullest means being more than just a good person.  It means being a helpful person, a person who is truly concerned about the welfare of others.  It means being the type of person who brings out the best in themselves, by bringing out the best in others.  There are so many ways that we can do this, by volunteering, donating our time, money, energy and resources, even something as small as lifting someone’s spirits when they are down.  It doesn’t have to be a grand gesture, just a heartfelt one.

So this week, encourage someone, congratulate someone, praise someone, help someone, make someone smile.  Since God is remembering all our actions, let’s make sure that the balance scales tip heavily on the side of our goodness.  Let the living of our faith make God smile.