Last weekend, I preached on my pop-up camper that I purchased about 7 years ago.  A 1974 Coleman Pop-up.  It was great until the mice invaded and chewed up everything.  For the last 5 years, I have driven by it parked alongside my grandpa’s driveway.  It got to a point where I could either continue to neglect it or put energy and effort into rebuilding it.  Like the Good Samaritan who didn’t neglect but responded to the needs of another, so I did with this trailer, haha.

This past Monday, however, I began to see the weekend’s gospel in action.  My dad and I were out framing and sheathing the camper for about 6 hours, until my mom drove in with two nieces and a nephew.  As they started to walk up to us, my dad asked me “is it okay to take the kids to the basement and play?” (as it was hot and humid).  And I said, “of course.”

In the gospel, we hear about Martha and Mary.  Martha was working non-stop, serving and helping, while Mary just sat at the feet of Jesus, listening to Him speak.  When Martha asked Jesus about Mary and why she left her by herself to do the serving, Jesus responds: “Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.”  Our Christian lives are all about choosing the better part.  In any given situation, what is the better part?  When it came to my dad working on the camper with me, the better part was to take care of his grandchildren.  Humanity trumps things, always.  That camper is not going anywhere.  But the kids are!  Sometimes we value things more than human beings.  In those times, we need to take a step back and remember what is truly important in life…faith, family, friendships…  In addition, the spiritual giant, St. Ignatius of Loyola reminds us that discernment is all about choosing between two goods.  That is why choosing the ‘better part’ can be so difficult to do at times.  Whatever you are discerning and trying to figure out in life, take a moment and sit at the feet of Jesus in adoration, and, with His help, choose the better part.

God bless your discernment,
Fr. Jeremy  

PS Please pray for the youth group as we attend the Steubenville Youth Conference this weekend.  It is always awesome to see so many youth praising the Lord at one time!