Brothers and Sisters,
How many of us are facing difficulties, and we feel like we just can’t go on anymore? When we face these feelings, we understand how Elijah felt. We can resonate with his words: “This is enough… take my life.” I’ve had it. I am literally at the end of my rope. I want to run away. Welcome to the world of the prophet Elijah. Better yet, welcome to our world. How many of us have experienced or are experiencing all the feelings that come with “I’ve had enough?”
We need to know that we are not alone in our suffering. We come together each Sunday, not because we have our act together, but just the opposite. We come together each week precisely because we are broken or suffering, anxious, oppressed, in need, or in pain. We come together, because we are human and because all of us carry within ourselves a little bit (or maybe a lot) of Elijah. We come together because life is fragile, and some days we just don’t know how we are going to go from one moment to the next.
The good news today is that Christ draws us to himself every day through the Eucharist to nourish and strengthen us for our journey. He is the Living Bread that satisfies our spiritual hunger. He equally fills us with His Spirit, who directs us on the right path on our journey. So today, God is saying to us as he spoke to Elijah in the desert, “arise, eat, drink,” and continue your journey with a new hope, a new passion, and a new strength. We can go on because our Lord sustains us and cares for us. Jesus offers us life giving food—His body and blood, soul and divinity—for the journey unto eternal life. What is your soul hungering for?
God Bless,
Deacon Howard
