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Thursday of the First Week of Advent
Isaiah 26:1-6
Psalm 118:I & 8-9, 19-21, 25-27A
Matthew 7:21, 24-27
Summary
“Not everyone who says to me,‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the Kingdom of heaven,
but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.”
Reflection
In today’s gospel we are reminded to be intentional about the foundation upon
which we are building our lives.Are we building a life that can withstand the
many storms that will inevitably come our way? Or are we building a life that is
accepted by others, feels good, or is just the path we are already on? Sometimes
I find that it actually can be difficult to tell.What if my intentions are good but
at times my foundation is shaky? Does that mean I am on the wrong path, pay-
ing attention to the wrong things? Perhaps the intention of my foundation is
good, it just needs strengthening.
Jesus reminds us that it will not be enough to
listen
to God and to
say
the right
things to show that we believe. Instead Jesus points out that we must
do
in order
to build lives on a foundation of rock.And isn’t it true that we already know
this to be true with all others things in life? As an engineer I am continually sur-
prised at how much I thought I knew when I theoretically understood how
something worked, but am proven very wrong when I go and built it, or test it
myself. In this hands-on process I always realize that I didn’t fully understand
until I attempted to put my knowledge into action. I have found this to be true
in so many other areas of my life as well. Do we not learn the best when we are
teaching a peer, a child, a nephew, a student, or a parent something ourselves?
Do we not build a greater understanding of the concept or the idea by putting
it into action?