Self-sufficient but not independent

Good News ReflectionWednesday of the Seventh Week of EasterMay 27, 2009
Today's Saint: Augustine of CanterburyPray for unity within the Churchhttp://wordbytes.org/saints/DailyPrayers/AugustineCanterbury.htm
Today's Readings:Acts 20:28-38Ps 68:29-30, 33-36abJohn 17:11b-19http://www.usccb.org/nab/052709.shtmlAudio:http://ccc.usccb.org/cccradio/NABPodcasts/09_05_27.mp3
Self-sufficient but not independent
In Christ's prayer of today's Gospel passage, we see what makes us different from those who belong to the world: We belong to the kingdom of heaven because Jesus has consecrated us to the truth (i.e., to the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth).
We live in the world so that we can infect it with the kingdom of God. We live in the world so that we can bring the truth to it. The Spirit of Truth works through us to carry holy ethics into business, into families, into politics, and into every aspect of society.
In today's first reading, we get a glimpse of St. Paul's influence on business and community affairs. He transformed the town of Ephesus by LIVING the Gospel. Although he was a powerful preacher of the truth, his words were backed up by the holiness of the Spirit of Truth that lived within him.
If we are extraordinary homilists or religious education teachers or daily reflection writers, but we are not preaching the same message with our daily, person-to-person behavior, the gift of preaching is being used scandalously. It's a terrible, far-reaching sin. It would be better to lose our voice than for souls to be wounded or lost on our account.
Notice how Paul did it. He could have rightfully asked the church community to finance his living expenses, but he worked as a tent-maker to take care of his own needs and to help his companions. Thus, he influenced the ethics of Ephesian society by showing that it's important to be self-sufficient for the sake of "helping the weak." He took care of his own needs to the extent that he could, not to be self-sufficient in an isolated sort of way, but to be generous toward others.
I have the same reason for not charging a fee for anything provided by Good News Ministries. My husband's salary enables me to do this, and to make up for what his income lacks, I started my own tent-making business, i.e., Catholic Digital Resources. Meanwhile, until that generates enough income, I am very grateful for the generous donations of some readers of these daily Good News Reflections, who are "helping the weak" with me.
However, I have learned much from relying on God to provide for this ministry through those who benefit from it. Self-sufficiency can feel like independence, and independence can easily lead to separation from community. This happens when we pridefully try to take care of all of our needs by ourselves and, when we cannot, we reject the help that God wants to give us through others. The Church is a community, and this means that our own needs are AS important as everyone else's. Living the Gospel means giving AND receiving so that we have more to give.
If you have needs that are not being met, the misery you feel is a warning flag. Either you're not availing yourself of what God wants to give you through others, or others are saying no to being used by God. As St. Paul demonstrated, by receiving what we need and sharing what we have, we transform the world.
© 2009 by Terry A. ModicaFor PERMISSION to copy any of my reflections, go to:http://gogoodnews.net/DailyReflections/copyrights-DR.htm
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