HOMILY FOR THURSDAY 27TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME B
{Galatians 3:1-5;Luke 11:5-13}
Today, we are faced with a parables that tells us the extent in which God can do in other to come to our aid. In other words, it gives us a sense of what true friendship is all about.
Examining on the parable of the “friend in need,” Jesus emphasizes our need for that persistent and persevering prayer which acknowledges our total dependence on God. This parable of Friend at Midnight is both an assurance that prayer is always answered and hence, an encouragement to pray.
This parable stresses the necessity for our persisting in prayer as the expression of our total dependence on God. St. Paul says, “Be constant in prayer” (Rom 12:12), “pray at all times” (Eph 6:18), “be steadfast in prayer” (Col 4:2), and “pray constantly” (2 Thes 5:17).Jesus assures us, “Knock and the door will be opened”(Lk 11: 10).
Dear brothers and sisters, we need to stop giving lame excuses for not praying. Modern Christians give four lame excuses for not praying:
1) We are “too busy.” This excuse should send us to our priorities list, where God needs to be first of all, if we are to be able to live in His peace. That settled, we will find that prayer in every form is our living connection with Him through which He gives us Grace, fills us with His love for us, and helps us to become our true selves. Then, with His help, we will be able to discern the truly important things in our lives and eliminate the unimportant and/or distracting, debilitating, and useless items.
2) We “don’t believe that prayer does that much good, other than giving us the psychological motivation to be better persons.” Such people forget the fact that prayer establishes and augments our responsive relationship with God, the Source of our power.
3) “A loving God should provide for us and protect us from the disasters of life, such as diseases or accidents, without our asking Him.” True – and He does! Prayer is not meant to inform God; it expresses our awareness of our need for God Who loves us unconditionally, and of our trusting dependence upon Him. Further, if we haven’t asked Him for what we need, we may well not recognize it when He gives it to us!
4) “Prayer is boring.” People who use this excuse forget the fact that prayer is a conversation with God: listening to God speaking to us through the Bible and talking to God through personal and family prayers. We can’t have a close relationship with anyone, including God, without persistent and intimate conversation.
Pax Vobis
Catholic Diocese of Ilorin, Kwara State,
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