we do not rise to the level of our
expectations we fall to the level of our
preparedness
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Avenues brother Mike Smith's and this is
a sentient so um I was recently reading
the Gospel of Mark and in the Gospel
Mark Gospel of Mark the very beginning
you have the story right up Jesus he
calls Simon and Andrew James and John
and they come follow him and then later
on that night they go to Simon's
mother-in-law so our Simon's house his
mother-in-law's there there's a healing
then all the people come to the house so
I get all the people come in Jesus is
like you're healed and you're healed and
you're healed like demons are getting
like kicked out of people's lives
illness sickness all these things
they're getting healed in these people's
lives it's it's incredible it's a huge
day um
then it says early the next morning
Jesus went up and went off to pray by
himself so Peter went to go find him
Simon went to go find him it's Simon
finds him and he says everyone is
looking for you
and I just I got I got I stuck on this
line of like everyone is looking for you
and one of the things that that stuck
with me was maybe the excitement in
Simon's voice in this moment right like
he gets called he's he's part of the
team he's like yeah he was he was
first-round draft pick Jesus is walking
along the the shores of the Sea of
Galilee in Matthew's Gospel and he's
like first one first one called
August after Andrew whatever you know
there they are
first round you're with me and then here
is Simon who is the seed be part of like
all of these miracles I think everything
is I can't imagine how exciting
everything would be I can't imagine how
like how eager he would be like
everyone's looking for you let's go back
this is like we are a front row seat to
the most incredible thing that has ever
happened in not just my life not just in
this region around the Sea of Galilee in
the world and the excitement because
it's exciting the eagerness because
everything is new in that moment at
least that's how I kind of read it
you're right
but then I thought about this and
realize the case of Mark's Gospel he's
the one where Peter says Simon says
everyone's looking for you well Mark's
Gospel is essentially Peter's Gospel
right because mark was Peters traveling
companion
in his evangelistic travels and so
Mark's Gospel is he's simply recording
and reporting what Simon preached a
repeater preached about Jesus and so
it's like I was like wait a second this
is this is like Simon's account of that
moment that excitement that eagerness
it's all new and in that moment Simon
has no idea what's coming like when it
when it's all new when it's exciting
when it he has no idea what's about to
happen now I say this because uh I don't
know I think whenever we start something
new it can have that excitement right
it's just like this is great this is new
is a new year a new job I've gone to a
new school I have a new relationship a
new adventure whatever that thing is in
that we can be who we can be so even
ministry I know a lot of people who
watch or listen to this are in ministry
like that new ministry like this is so
great I'm excited I'm eager it's all new
or even maybe you have you come to
Christ in a new way and so you've
decided like I'm gonna pray like this is
and I'm so excited to pray I'm here
right because it's new and every new
step is a new thing or every step is a
new step I guess you could say and we
have no idea what's coming no quick
little thing this is not like an
endorsement for pessimism where it's
like once you start getting excited you
just realized you have no idea what's
coming not saying that at all in fact to
enter into joy in the moment to enter
into happiness in the moment to enter
into the newness and excitement and
eagerness of the moment that's a gift
but we also have to realize that
something else is coming Simon Peter
everyone is looking for you is the same
Simon Peter who is first-round draft
pick who's the same Simon Peter who's
gonna be sent out and do the hard work
of evangelization he's gonna the same
son of Peter who's gonna come face to
face with his own weakness his own
brokenness multiple times the same Simon
Peter who's so excited at the beginning
is the Simon Peter who when he falls has
to come back to Jesus and say Lord you
know I love you the same Simon Peter who
is so excited that all of these miracles
will also
Jesus will do miracles from him but he
also will be asked to give his entire
life for Christ and yes it's so good
it's a it's easy to be excited to be at
the beginning and that's great please be
excited at the beginning it's a whole
other thing to keep on going when the
newness wears off it's a whole nother
thing to keep on going when it's like
okay now it's kind of a slog now it's
kind of like I just have to get through
this now now I have to live up to the
commitments that I made but here's the
thing that the word is perseverance that
is where real growth happens that is
where real character is formed in fact I
might use this quote too often it's from
Romans chapter 5 but in Romans chapter 5
st. Paul is writing and he says this he
says we boast of our afflictions we
boast of the things that are rough
coming up against us the obstacles we
boast of our afflictions because we know
that affliction produces endurance and
endurance proven character and proven
character produces hope that that we
actually st. Paul as a Christian says no
I know that the newness the excitement
stuff so good it's awesome fantastic but
the obstacles are also good because
affliction produces endurance that
perseverance that like going through
continuing to get up every day and
saying I said I would do this I'm gonna
do it today I'm gonna keep loving my
wife because I said I'd love her
I mean people my husband because I said
I love I'm gonna keep loving my kids or
because they call it the love of them
I'm gonna here's the thing I'm gonna
keep praying and going back to the
sacraments they're no longer he's no
longer as exciting as they as they were
at the beginning
but even that dryness and that
distraction even that dullness maybe is
good because that produces endurance and
that per Durance endurance produces
character and that character is hope
that that trust in God extended into the
future see Saints aren't made when it's
new Saints aren't made when when things
are easy Saints are made because a
person has has shown up again and again
and again even when it wasn't new that's
why I think that that quote from the
Greek philosopher
for our Killa cos of saying we do not
rise to the level of our expectations in
the battle we don't rise to the level of
our expectations we fall to the level of
our preparedness
that's why st. Paul can rejoice in his
afflictions coz like wow every single
one of those afflictions when I
persevered it created something in me
character every time I came back to the
Lord even in my weakness even in my
brokenness even a my my like shame he
produced something in me even when the
newness wore off I kept choosing him and
that made you someone different made you
someone new it's again it's wonderful to
be excited when it's new it's incredible
to still belong to him to still choose
him when it's no longer new and no
longer exciting true love you had any
real relationship true love is not the
first love true love is a love that's
proven itself the same it's true for
human relationships it's absolutely true
for our relation with God true love is
not the first love the new love true
love his love that is proven itself
anyways for all of us here at essentia
presents and his father Mike
god bless joy the sunshine or the rain
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