You're So Needy

A Reflection on the Psalm for September 1st, 2019:
​Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time

Psalm 68

R. In your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy.

Let the righteous be joyful; let them exult before God; let them be jubilant with joy. Sing to God, sing praises to his name; his name is the Lord, be exultant before him. R.

Father of orphans and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation. God gives the desolate a home to live in; he leads out the prisoners to prosperity. R.

Rain in abundance, O God, you showered abroad; you restored your heritage when it languished; your flock found a dwelling in it; in your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy. R.

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Recently, as I sat on the side of a soccer field watching my son’s game, I listened in on the conversation next to me. Another soccer dad was asking my husband about our involvement in church, and about the programming offered to children and youth. He mentioned how one of his boys was now confirmed and finished with “Sunday School”, and how the second one would finish this year. I got the sense that he was talking about confirmation as an end to something rather than a beginning.
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“In your goodness, O God, you provided for the needy”.


Do we realize just how needy we are? With another political election looming, we all long for a leader that will best serve the needs of the country. We hear lots of strong opinions on what people think we need most. The truth is, there is only one person who can meet all of our needs and that person is Jesus Christ. The sad thing is, so many people out there don’t realize they even need Him.


Although I’ve always had my faith in God to rely on, I didn’t always believe I was needy. I was living by the world’s standards, defining myself by my career, and looking for the world’s acceptance through my successes. I was in need of the world’s approval. I knew in my head that I needed Jesus but I didn’t know what it felt like in my heart to truly need Him. After Jesus revealed Himself to me in a personal way, I then knew, deep down inside, that I was loved more deeply than any human being could love me. I then knew how much I needed Him.

"In Him and only in Him, do I find peace in who He created me to be."

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Now, whenever I start to feel the pull of the world on me, making me feel like I need its approval, I turn to God and acknowledge my need for Him. In Him and only in Him, do I find peace in who He created me to be.


That is what I want the dad on the soccer field and his sons to know. I want them to know that they too are in need of a saviour, and that need will never go away—even after confirmation. It’s only in our relationship with Jesus that our needs are finally fulfilled.


​Tammy LeBlanc

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