Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time ‘C’

Today’s readings invite a quieter, clearer kind of following: placing God before every other good,  letting his love order all our loves. 

From the Book of Wisdom, we hear a gentle request: ask. Not for more willpower, but for  discernment and strength from the Spirit. Where am I relying on my own understanding? Where  do I need the grace to see and the courage to act? Holy Spirit teach me what matters today,  and give me the strength to do it. 

Psalm 90 brings us into the honesty of time. Life is short and uncertain. That truth is not meant  to frighten me, but to free me. If my days are numbered, how do I want to spend this one?  Whom do I need to forgive? What small good can I do that will actually last? Lord, teach me to  number my days, that I may gain a wise heart. 

Paul’s Letter to Philemon turns our attention to relationships… The Gospel doesn’t simply make  me nicer; it makes us strangers to our families. Do I see people as problems to solve, tools to  use, or as brothers and sisters to honor? Where am I tempted to hold on to my usefulness, my  control, my preferences rather than receive others as gifts? May Jesus loosen our grip. May my  influence be used to dignify, reconcile, and bless. 

In the Gospel, Jesus asks us to count the cost… Not to scare us away, but to love us into  freedom. To “hate” in this context is to refuse to let any love compete with God. So, what  competes in me: approval, success, comfort, the script my family or culture hands me? Where is  He asking me to travel lighter (possessions, plans, resentments)? The cross He offers is daily  and concrete: it involves showing up, telling the truth, serving when no one sees.  

Yes, the path is serious, but it is not joyless, because the One who asks for everything first  gives Himself. In putting God first, our time, our relationships, and our possessions are returned  to us as gifts to share, not burdens to guard.