In a recent discussion with my mom and Dad, we were remarking how great YouTube is as a tool for learning. This came up because I had looked to YouTube for tips on how to better manage a dog pulling on its leash. There are so many useful how-to videos on that platform. You can find advice on everything from car maintenance to pet training to appliance fixing and so much more. I bet many of you have looked to YouTube for how-to advice. It’s great for that. For other things, the jury is definitely out. But at least in this area, it is a marvelous resource.
The video that I watched gave excellent advice on how to get your dog to stop pulling on the leash when walking. The man in the video described a very simple technique: as you’re walking, if you notice your dog is straining at the end of the leash, just make an abrupt U-turn and give the leash a solid tug, forcing the dog to change direction and follow you. This works incredibly well. After a few U-turns during a walk, Benny is much more willing to walk beside me or behind me. The U-turn helps the dog realize that he or she is not the one in charge on the walk–you are. The sudden yank from the leash is simply a reminder of this fact. After a few yanks, the dog gets it–follow the Pack Leader because he or she is the one who decides where this walk is going.
This leash trick actually is a great analogy for what Jesus is teaching us through the readings this weekend. So much of what we hear about involves the key ability to follow where God leads us.
In the first reading, we see Elijah inviting Elisha to follow him. Notice that there is really no warning for this on Elisha’s end. He is out working in the field, plowing with some oxen, when all of a sudden Elijah approaches Elisha and throws his cloak over him, inviting him to follow him. Elisha seems to be a bit divided. He pleads to go back and kiss his parents goodbye, but Elijah seems to threaten to take back his offer, saying, “Go back! Have I done anything to you?” He’s basically saying, “This is just the very first step of the journey, if you don’t want to come right now, get going!” Elisha understands that Elijah’s call is a radical one, one which will demand his total obedience. So he goes and slaughters the animals he had been working with and leaves everything to follow Elijah. It is very possible that Elisha’s travels with the prophet Elijah would bring him into contact with his family once again. But in that moment, Elijah was challenging Elisha to be detached in his heart from all that might distract him from the Lord’s call. Elijah had to put his complete trust in God, who was calling Him to radical trust through the prophet Elisha. The only valid response when God calls is to follow in trust. It isn’t always easy, but it is absolutely worth it.
In the Gospel, we see similar struggles to trust and follow the Lord’s call. The stakes are even greater now, because God isn’t just calling people through a prophet, but directly, through Jesus, God-with-us. Jesus invites various different people to join Him and He warns them of the radical nature of His call. The first person says, “I will follow you wherever you go.” I bet some of you might have found yourself in this place before. In a burst of fervor, you tell Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” But then Jesus says, “OK, here is where I need you to follow me.” And all of a sudden, you find yourself saying, “Oooh man, are you sure about that, Jesus? I mean, I’ll follow you, but…there?” Jesus sees that this man talks a good game, but isn’t necessarily ready to be detached from the familiarity of his earthly home. Jesus cuts right to the heart of the matter, telling him: “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.” Jesus’ call isn’t about making us comfortable, it’s about sending us on a journey into the unfamiliar and the uncomfortable with Him at our side. He knows that it is easy to be distracted by what is comfortable, familiar and easy around us, but the life of discipleship calls us to be challenged; to not set our hearts on the things of this world, but on the treasures of Heaven!
This same principle applies with the other two people we hear about in the Gospel. In both cases, the things they want to focus on are legitimate, but in that moment are not what Jesus is calling them to do. Jesus tells the one wanting to bury his father: “Let the dead bury their dead. But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” This is a challenging call, but Jesus knows what is good for this man. By saying “Let the dead bury their dead,” Jesus implies that those preparing the funeral for that man’s father are not people of faith. Who knows – maybe it was a pagan funeral ceremony. So perhaps that funeral would not have been appropriate for the man to attend, even though it was for his father. Regardless of what the situation was, Jesus knew that the most important thing at that moment was for this man to go and proclaim the good news of the Kingdom which he had learned from Jesus.
The final person we hear about has a similar request to Elisha in the Old Testament. He wants to go and say goodbye to his family, but Jesus knows that the time to follow Him is now. He warns the man not to look back. Again, we don’t know what the situation with his family was, but Jesus did. He knew it perfectly and knew that the moment had come for that man to courageously and sacrificially follow Him.
All of us will be challenged by Jesus in different ways. His call will force us to give up what is comfortable and familiar for the sake of that which will build the kingdom of God here on earth and lead us toward our true home in Heaven!
Our challenge is to be open to the call of Jesus, which comes to us through the Holy Spirit. St. Paul reminds us in the second reading: “For freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.” This freedom that St. Paul speaks of is the freedom to become the best version of ourselves through God’s grace. This only happens when we allow the Holy Spirit, and not our weak flesh, to guide us. It is all too easy to set up the things of this world as idols, especially things like sports, entertainment, and hobbies. These are all good things, but not the ultimate Good. Even the best things in this world, like our family members and friends, can sometimes distract us from what God is calling us to do. We need to focus on Him first so that we can be attentive to the nudges of the Holy Spirit in our hearts. When we do this, God will show us how to best use the good things of this world and how to travel with our families and friends toward heaven. The Holy Spirit will form our hearts in true love so that we might go where the Father is inviting us to go.
Think back to Benny and our leash training. The benefit of the leash is that it clues Benny into the direction that I am trying to lead him. Our relationship with God is this way. So often we want to strain at the leash and stick our noses in every worldly distraction, but God, through the Holy Spirit poured out in us at our Baptism, is tugging on our hearts, inviting us to follow Him more closely.
I will end today with two quick suggestions for how to become more attentive to those nudges of the Holy Spirit. First, get close to Mary, especially through the Rosary. Mary is called the Spouse of the Holy Spirit because of her intimate union with the Spirit throughout her life. She can teach all of us to imitate her perfect attention to the Spirit. Second, I invite you to spend more time in silence with Jesus in the Eucharist, whether by a short visit to the Church during the day, coming to daily Mass, or simply taking a moment in your heart to spiritually draw near to Jesus’ presence here in the tabernacle. Silence with Jesus in the Eucharist opens us up to be more attentive to the gentle movements of the Spirit in our hearts.
+ Father, thank you for sending us Jesus to save us from the destruction of sin in our hearts. Jesus, thank you for calling us to a life of discipleship, a life of following you in the newness of the Holy Spirit you give us. Holy Spirit, help us not to be distracted from the call of Jesus, but to be attentive to His call and courageous in answering it. We pray this through Christ, our Lord. Amen. +