Praying with Sunday's Scriptures

Editor's note: To help small faith-sharing groups, couples, individuals and others continuing the Renew 2000 experience of praying with the Sunday Scripture readings, a Diocesan Faith Sharing Writing Team has prepared a monthly series using the Renew model. The series is being distributed to parish leaders and will appear in The Compass the week before that Sunday.

	Oct. 17, 2004 -- 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time Reading I: Exodus 17: 8-13 Psalm Response: Psalm 121 Reading II: 2 Timothy 3:14--4:2 Gospel: Luke 18:1-8

By Marge Mattice

Focus: Persistence is grounded in the belief that God will accomplish his will in all circumstances of our lives. Our persistence is a gift of grace from God, not something based on human desire and effort.

Opening Prayer: Creator God, overflow in our hearts the grace that comes from knowing you love us endlessly in all things. Help us to find in your persistent love the basis for all our desires and efforts on behalf of the Kingdom. May we come to realize you as the source of all that is good, and all that we accomplish. We make our prayer in the name of Jesus, your son and our brother. Amen.

Scripture Sharing: What thought, line or image from the Scripture readings caught your attention?

Reflection: These readings convey the idea of persistence. But we must not hear in them the command to try harder and longer by "stepping up" our human effort. In the first reading, Amalek engages Moses in battle; Moses struggles to keep his hands upraised. Even Aaron and Hur pitch in when Moses tires, each holding a hand upraised for Moses so the Israelites might win. We can almost feel the exhaustion of Moses to "keep on fighting," to hold those hands up just a bit longer. This can intimidate us so that we don't want to engage in this kind of battle. Our doubts whisper: "Those who don't fight the battle never get exhausted." The Psalm encourages us to reconsider what the source of our strength could and should be. We are challenged: Is the source of our persistence our own human effort? Or is it the graced knowledge that God sleeps not, and that our comings and goings are guarded both now and forever? Paul's letter to Timothy reminds us of an important source of persistence as we wage the battles of faith and life - the Scriptures. Paul notes that Scripture equips us for every good work, so we're able to proclaim by our lives the Word from which we seek our strength. The Gospel summarizes the wonderful truth those who are rooted in total dependence and trust in God will encounter a God who is worthy of all trust and hope. Jesus' final question in this reading is a direct challenge to every listener: How willing are you to be persistent in your dependence on God?

Faith Sharing

1. Compare those times in your life where your persistence came from your own human effort with those times when you relied on God. As your faith has matured, has your reliance on God grown?

2. How do you understand persistence collectively ... how are we as church called to be persistent?

3. When have the Scriptures been your source of strength to persist? Share a passage that has been particularly meaningful for you.

Action Response

1. Take the time to listen and support someone you know who can use your help as they struggle to "keep their arms raised" even as they grow weary.

2. Write about or share with someone this week about how God has shown you care when you have struggled, and how this has helped your faith and trust grow.

3. Evaluate your role in your parish community, and look at ways you help, or could help, your parish community be a persistent sign of God's Kingdom.

Closing Prayer

Psalm 121-revisited; pray together:

Our help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.

God will not allow our feet to slip; our guardian does not sleep.

The Lord is our guardian, the Lord is our shade at our right hand.

By day the sun cannot harm us, nor the moon by night.

The Lord will guard us from all evil, will always guard our lives.

The Lord will guard our comings and goings, both now and forever.

(Mattice is a member of St. Matthew Parish, Green Bay, and of the Diocesan Faith Sharing Writing Team.)