We Are the Amazement of God!

By DEACON ROBERT YERHOT, MSW

Imagine a sailing ship on an open, stormy sea. The waves are high and the ship is being tossed to and fro. Difficult going, yet the wind is in its sail and it is moving toward a port of safety. I suggest that this image portrays our lives and the three theological virtues given to us at baptism: Faith, Hope, and Charity. Life is the stormy sea. It repeatedly challenges us and threatens us. Faith is the ship, giving us shape and buoyancy; as long as we have faith, we won’t sink. Hope is the driving force, the wind in our sails, propelling us through the rough waters and deep seas of life. Charity is our destination, the port of safety for which we long, the harbor where the storms of life will be no more.

Does this image make sense? Can you identify with it? I suspect most of us can who have lived long enough!

Pope Blessed John Paul I (the pope who reigned only for 33 days in 1978) once wrote that we are the amazement of God because of our hope. Because of the wind in our sails, we are amazing to God! Blessed John Paul I mused that perhaps God is not all that amazed by our faith, for indeed he has left so many signs of his presence and working in the world, in history, and indeed even in our own lives, that any reasonable person would believe in him and his presence among us. He further suggested that maybe God is not all that amazed by our charity, because he created us out of love, and for love, and has given us hearts of flesh, not stone, so we cannot help but love. But, Blessed John Paul I thought, God may very well be amazed by our hope! God is amazed by our hope. What a beautiful thought!

The medieval poet Dante wrote that hope is a waiting with the certitude of faith. Hope is waiting, forward-looking, rooted in love for God in the certitude of a future glory that will be ours when we reach our destination.

Any of us who have lived for a length of time have seen the face of death. We have seen the Cross in our lives and in the lives of others. We have had our bumps, bruises, and injuries. We know that, at times, life can be ugly. Suffering comes with the territory. Hope, grounded in faith, is what drives us through the storms, the setbacks, the sufferings, and the ugliness of life. Such hope is sustained by the certitude of love. Have you ever wondered what the difference was between Peter and Judas Iscariot? Both were apostles. Both were chosen. Both were friends of Jesus. Both sinned horribly against our Lord. What was the difference? I think it was this: Peter had hope; Judas despaired; Peter chose to live, reconciled with Jesus and renewed in faith and love for him; Judas chose to die.

Let us be like Peter. Let us live in hope, not despair. Let us choose life, not death. Let us never become discouraged, never! Always remain hopeful. Whenever we inevitably fall, sin, are sinned against by others, or suffer, let us turn to faith, hope, and love. Let us immediately renew our faith and love for God, pick ourselves up, seek reconciliation, and never lose hope, never give in to discouragement !

When life gets tough, cling to hope.

When you struggle, live on in hope, grounded in your faith and love of God.

When looking at the Cross in your life, see in it your hope of future glory.

Jesus knew there was no detour around the Cross – for him or for us. He knew the Cross was the only route to the harbor of safety, and the love of God for all eternity.

Hope drives us across the sea of life toward the embrace of God’s love in heaven. Never lose hope! Never be discouraged! Indeed, you are the amazement of God when you hope.

Deacon Robert Yerhot serves the parishes of St. Mary in Caledonia and St. Patrick in Brownsville.