UP HILL BATTLES

UP HILL BATTLES

Do you ever have the feeling that you are fighting an uphill battle? (I’ll wait till you stop laughing.) There are few people who have not felt this way.  Most of the time you will keep plugging away despite the obstacles.  Parents of teens know what this is about; Doctors and police officers keep on fighting despite the feeling that the triumphs are outweighed by the failures.  Something stronger than themselves drives them to continue.  And so it was with Jesus and his efforts to literally change the world.  Over and over he is met with arguments using the Law and Moses for ammunition.  Over and over, he maintains the rightness of his arguments, never backing down or avoiding the situation. 

Confronted with the woman caught in adultery he was reminded what Moses said about such women and what their fate should be. They were trying to trick him into questioning the Law of Moses or abandoning his compassionate stance.    It didn’t do them any good because he was ready for them.  Still, these kinds of confrontations were way too plentiful. They got in the way of his mission because he knew their questions came from ego and not true inquiry. He was patient, but not wanting to waste his time, which he knew was limited, but rather to gather the poor around him and give them hope.

He also was discouraged by the way they had perverted the Law for their own ends. In one case he scolded those who confronted him yet again for overriding the commandments, “How well you have set aside the commandment of God in order to uphold your tradition!  Moses said, ‘Honor your father and mother’… Yet you say, ‘If a person says to parents, “Any support you might have had from me is dedicated to God”, you allow him to do nothing more for his parents.  You nullify the word of God in favor of your tradition.” (MK 9:10-13) This kind of thing went on daily in Jesus life.  Even his disciples questioned some of his words. 

When we get tired of the struggle to do what is right, we would do well to remember these things that happened to Jesus.  Every time yet another issue confronted him, he prayed to God for assistance and was confident he would receive it.  The betrayal and crucifixion of Jesus was the final treachery.  He faced it with the same unswerving bearing. Jesus has many titles, but when it comes to uphill battles he is Jesus the Steadfast. With him as our example and with the same Father supporting our efforts we will be able to climb as high as necessary.

Blessings,

Carol Lemelin