Daily Gospel Reflection for September 7, 2018

Today's Gospel: Luke 5:33-39 "When can I get a cell phone?" my son had asked constantly over the course of his middle school career. "When you're in high school," had always been my go-to response. I knew I was the one parent in his peer group that had held out the longest. But, just like Jesus wasn't fazed by his disciples' behavior being compared to that of John's and the pharisees', I wasn't fazed by mine being compared to that of other parents. I knew my teenage son getting a cell phone would change everything. I loved our little family exactly as we were. I didn't want things to change. I had spent years getting us to that golden phase where my kids were old enough to be independent, yet young enough to still listen to me. Like a tanner works the leather for wine skins, I had worked, and worried, and trouble-shot more issues than I could count. Finally, we were like the old wine in Luke 5 that was "good." I wanted to coast and enjoy the fruits of my labor, indefinitely. But no matter how much we want things to stay the same, life doesn't work that way. Time marches on, just like it did in the Gospels: Jesus, the bridegroom, did leave. His disciples did fast. Time marched on in my world too. My son started high school last week. He now carries a shiny new cell phone in his pocket. It's not as bad as I feared. I can reach him in a moment's notice when he's out and about, and vice versa. But, like the disciples surely longed for the days when Jesus was with them, drinking old wine, I too long for the days when my little family was content to just be together, reading on the couch.

Ponder:

Is there an inevitable change coming up that I'm resisting? Would the transition be easier if I surrendered it to God?

Pray:

Ever constant God, change is hard and unsettling. When it does come, please tether me to You so I feel anchored and safe, despite the shifting landscape around me.