Psalm Reflection: The Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle B

“May the Lord bless us all the days of our lives.” - Psalms 128

When was the worst day of your life? I think every single person could identify one pretty easily. Now, imagine on the worst day of your life, someone came up to you and said, “think of this as a blessing,” would you be able to? I think most of us would scoff at the idea and harbor resentment toward the person who said that.

Every day is truly meant to be a blessing and a gift from God, but there are days where it is nigh impossible to recognize that because we are having the worst day of our lives. Trauma, loss, illness, suffering, sin, death, grief, bankruptcy, divorce, and losing a job never feel like blessings. Maybe you are reading this and you have experienced all or most of those things recently, it can easily feel like things will never be good or normal again.

God has a way of turning things upside down.

He used His own horrific death to bring eternal life.

He chose twelve rejects to be his disciples.

He went to the people and places that were culturally forbidden and brought healing and reconciliation.

We often wonder why God allows bad things to happen. It is an important question of justice that we will only fully understand the answer to in Heaven, but God must allow evil to exist because by removing it He would remove our free will and our capacity to grow in virtue. If we never experienced adversity and loss, we would not appreciate and grow in grace. If we did not have a choice to turn away from God, we could not choose to love Him. Out of love and respect for our freedom, God must allow for us to turn away from Him, which is why evil, sin and suffering exist.

However, God is not a helpless victim of our circumstances. God’s hands are not tied behind His back because of our choices. God is always working for our good, and will take whatever we choose, good or bad, and find a way to use it for something good.

“We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” - Romans 8:28

Any failure and every bad decision, experience, or event can lead to something good.

In 1928, Sir Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin by accident. He came back from vacation to find mold growing in a petri dish of bacteria cultures. He noticed that bacterial colonies would not grow near the mold and wondered what was happening. After isolating the mold and conducting some tests, Fleming realized that it inhibited bacterial growth. By 1942, penicillin was mass-produced as medicine as a result of this discovery, which has saved over 500 million lives according to today’s estimates.

One accident, one failure, can lead to abundant blessing.

Death reminds us to live.

Loss reminds us that time is precious.

Grief draws us closer to those who walk with us.

Suffering allows us to offer our pain up for others.

Sin reminds us that we need a Savior.

These things were never part of God’s plan, but the second they entered the human experience He began to use them for our good, and He continues to do so.

“God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living.” - Wisdom 1:13

“What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who can be against us?” - Romans 8:31

What pain are you holding onto or running away from? Either way, the Lord wants to use it to bless us. So, stop running. Let go of the anger and bitterness, because if we cling to the past your hands are not open to receive your future.

Offer up every loss, sin, suffering, regret, worry and anxiety to the Lord, and hear Him say to you, “Behold, I make all things new” (Revelation 21:5).

I am praying for you, please pray for me, and I will see you in the Eucharist.

This reflection is based on the Responsorial Psalm for this Sunday, October 6th, 2024, the Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time - Cycle B: Psalms 128:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6.