Sunday Reflection, March 4: God, the Giver of Abundance

Scripture Readings
Genesis 15:5-12, 17-18
Psalm 27
Philip 3:17-4:1
Luke 9:28-36

Abundance is an overarching theme for the week. Several good friends of mine are anticipating the completion of their graduate degrees, are receiving sizeable raises and bonuses, and/or have received great job offers. Numerous good things seem to be coming to people who have worked hard for their accomplishments and opportunities. Every one of my friends, though, has remarked how unworthy they feel of such good fortune and worry that they will somehow mess things up and cause the good fortune to disappear. One friend worries that she will never be able to finish her long-overdue research paper in time for graduation; another one frets about handling the added work responsibility that will come with the hefty raise; and the other one believes she doesn’t deserve the multiple job offers that will give her the challenges she has longed for. It seems such abundance has evoked insecurities within these normally self-assured people.

When most of us think of Lent, we normally remark how Lent is a time of repentance and sacrifice. We are used to longing for what we don’t have and sacrificing things in order that we might someday attain our deepest desires. But what happens when we receive them? This Sunday’s Gospel and readings actually paint a picture through Christ’s transfiguration of what goodness comes from God’s generosity. This abundance, not a typical description for Lent, calls us to consider how and why we are worthy of such happiness and joy.

When I was young, I believed in the romance of fate—that God was intimately directing all aspects of my life. Wherever I was, I was supposed to be there. This type of thinking leaves out a crucial element of Christian theology, free will. It can also contribute to negative self-esteem. For instance, if bad things happen it is because I have not been good enough for God to provide me with good things. As I have grown older, I reconstructed this paradigm to include my role and responsibility for making choices. God still plays an intimate role in my life, not as the director, but as the giver of abundance. In such a paradigm, we humans have a significant responsibility to make good choices, not only for ourselves, but for the greater community. Practitioners of Ignatian spirituality often speak of the choice between multiple goods. A difficult choice typically does not include a choice between good and bad, but a choice between two goods. Like my friend with the multiple job offers, she is deciding which one will give her the opportunity to do the most good and make her ultimately happier.

In the paradigm of abundance, God is not the only doer of good. We often forget about the choices and sacrifices we have made, which contributes to the notion that we are unworthy of the opportunities that come our way. We are co-creators with God of our good fortune. God created the abundance of opportunity and we acted upon those options and decided how to make the most of them.

We hear the story of Abram and the promise of many descendants, as well as Peter’s reaction to Christ’s transfiguration in this Sunday’s scriptures. I cannot help but wonder if Abram and Peter also felt unworthy of their good fortunes. Abram and his wife, Sarai, were an old, childless couple. When God told Abram that he would have as many descendants as the number of stars in the sky, the scripture simply reads that Abram believed. This instance is one of many found in the bible where the truncated dialogue leaves me thinking we don’t have the full story. Didn’t Abram have a more complex reaction than just simply believing the Lord’s statement? I wonder if he had fully trusted God’s statement and had questioned why he was the object of the Lord’s generosity. It is the same with Peter. When Peter hurriedly remarked that he, James and John should build three altars—one for Jesus, one for Elijah and the other for Moses—he demonstrated that he missed the whole point of Christ’s transfiguration. I like to believe that Peter said this because he felt unworthy of witnessing such a miracle and for the ultimate salvation and eternal life promised to him. At least, I would have felt this way and have said something equally nonsensical and embarrassing.

Along with believing in one’s self worth, trust in God plays a crucial role in the paradigm of abundance. When we make a decision, we really do not know what the result will be. We might truly love the job we decide to take or find the choice to be less than satisfying. Likewise, we might begin to realize that a raise might not be worth the extra responsibility we now have. Regardless, we need to trust that God will always give us an abundance of options and gifts, so that we might make the most out of every thing we do and what kind of person we become. Christ calls us to embark on a loving relationship with him where we learn to love him, ourselves, and our neighbors more deeply. The choice for such happiness and joy is ours to make.

JoEllen Windau