Uninvited

From the Mount of the Beatitudes, we soak in the good news that Jesus brought to the poor in spirit. The message for us is clear: Don't keep being enslaved to runaway emotions and assumptions. Go on a "live loved" quest. Get to a place where your immediate reaction to off-kilter interactions with others isn't a downward spiral of wonky feelings, but stable love instead.

In Caiaphas's house, we recall Peter's betrayal of Jesus, triggered by his fear of rejection by the servant girl. He brought his emptiness into that courtyard. But what if he had brought the fullness of God? Do you walk into situations like a shepherd, looking for ways to bless others? Or do you walk in looking for ways for others to bless you? It's our choice.

From the Cave of Adullum where David hid from Saul, we discover that David's rejection by Nabal triggered an over-reaction, but Abigail intervened. She showed David how to pay Attention to the truth, and not to his pained past. She got him to refocus on his real Intention, which was to take care of his men. And she moved him toward Prevention by thinking about the consequences of his actions.

In Shiloh, where Hannah prayed in desperation for a child, we can relate to desperately wanting something, and seeing the Lord blessing other women in that area. We feel set aside. Why them and not us? Our prayers answered with a "no" or "wait" can make us feel unnoticed, uninvited. But God's delay in answering Hannah's prayer was protection for a high calling, not a rejection.

Looking out at the Sea of Galilee from the cliffs of Mount Arbel, we focus on Jesus' life between his miracles of healing, feeding the five thousand, and calming the storm. Jesus experienced rejection, exhaustion, and ridicule. We learn that resisting God's promises will make us forget God's presence. But resting in God's promises, and reciting God's promises, will help us remember God's presence.

Before his ultimate rejection at Golgotha, Jesus wrestled in the Garden of Gethsemane among the olive trees with what he knew was coming. Olive trees need both harsh east wind and refreshing west wind. Olives have to be heavily processed in order to get rid of hardness and bitterness. And olives must be pressed to produce valuable oil, and oil can then produce light.