Trust in His Perfect Plan

A Reflection on the Gospel for July 24th, 2022:
​Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

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Luke
11.1-13

Jesus was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.”

He said to them, “When you pray, say: ‘Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.’”

And Jesus said to the disciples, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.’ And your friend answers from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’

“I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.

“So I say to you: Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.

“Is there any father among you who, if your child asks for a fish, will give the child a snake instead of a fish? Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion?

“If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

I am someone who always needs to have a plan. I look at what is needed in any situation, put a plan in place, and set about getting those needs met. The problem with this is that those plans are usually brought about by my own human doing, so what happens when things are taken totally out of my control? Let’s face it. If I’m being honest, everything in life is out of my human control. My faith tells me that God has the ultimate plan, and that no matter what, it will be good.

This gospel reading confirms that understanding. In this teaching, Jesus reminds me how to pray. Praise God. Recognize His name and ask for what I need. Resist the temptation to think that I am in control and put all my cares in His hands. Rest in the assurance that He will give me what I need for this day. He then tells me to be persistent in asking. That is comforting because when I find myself succumbing to my human desire to control, I realize I can turn that into a desire to lean on God. This requires me to rely on faith – that which is unseen. So hard for my human nature to do, and so He goes on to remind me that if I just ask, my Heavenly Father will give me only good.

Sometimes good is masked as something that the world tells us is not good. Consider an unfavourable health diagnosis or scare. On the surface, this is not a good thing. It causes worry, illness, and unplanned disruption, and puts all our earthly plans on hold.  Yet along with it comes the love of family and friends, support from a workplace, and newfound respect for a health system and the privileges we enjoy in this country.

I am in the midst of such a trial. I am waiting for the results of some pretty scary tests, and my humanness is kicking in daily. When I give in to it, I find myself scouring the internet for answers and sitting in worry. This leads to anxiety, tears, and uncertainty. Then I receive a gift like this gospel reading, or a hug from my beautiful granddaughter. My husband will wrap his arms around me and remind me that there is nothing in this world we can’t face together with God by our side. A friend will text and let me know I am being thought of and prayed for at precisely the moment I need to hear it. And then that peace that is undoubtedly the presence of the Holy Spirit floods through me, and I know in my soul that all will be well, regardless of the outcome of any medical test.

Let us pray. Lord, thank You for Your steadfast faithfulness. You who rebuke the winds and the sea and bring about calm. Steady my heart and refresh my faith in Your perfect plan. Jesus, I trust in You.




Sandy Graves

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