Feast of Saint Joseph the Worker
There is a story of a party of sailors who were shipwrecked and drifting in the ocean in an open boat. They’d been drifting for days, had run out of fresh water, and were starting to suffer the agonies of thirst. Finally, another boat came within hailing distance. The sailors cried out, begging for water. The sailors from the other boat yelled back, “Let down your bucket.” How cruel this must have sounded. They kept screaming for water, but all they got back was, “Let down your bucket; throw your bucket down!” In desperation, one of the sailors threw the bucket overboard and pulled it back up. To his surprise, the bucket was full of clean, fresh, sparkling water. For several days, these shipwrecked sailors had been drifting through fresh water and didn’t know it. Surrounded by fresh, clean water, they were dying of thirst.
Our Gospel reading today proclaims, “He does not ration his gift of the Spirit” (John 3:35). God’s giving to us is boundless. If that is true, then why do we so often live as if we are dying of thirst? We lack love for one another and are undeveloped as the Body of Christ. If God does not ration his gift to us, the Spirit’s limited effectiveness must be due to a lack in us. Perhaps it is our fear of allowing God to be in control, of trusting God that much.
The Apostles in today’s first reading are a perfect example of boldly letting go and letting God. After receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit, many signs and wonders were done among the people through the Apostles. And despite persecution and imprisonment, the Apostles continued to proclaim, “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).
Just for today, can I let go of my fear and need for control, letting God live and work in me?
Let Us Pray:
Lord, today I place my trust in You with all my heart. I acknowledge that my understanding is limited, and I lean on You for guidance and wisdom in all I do. With gratitude and love, I commit this day to You, trusting that You are always by my side. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
