Allowing God to do great things through us

Today we hear the parable of the sower from Matthew 13:1-9. Jesus reminds us that a tiny seed planted in good soil can produce a good crop. It is a good example for the prophet Jeremiah whose teachings we will be hearing over the next weeks. In the beginning of his book that we hear today, he tells us that the Lord spoke to him saying, ''Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you and called you to be a prophet to the nations.'' But Jeremiah was a reluctant prophet. He said, ''Ah, Lord, I do not know how to speak, I am a child.'' But the Lord touched his mouth and said, ''I am putting my words in your mouth, I am setting you over the nations to build and plant.'' His dates are generally given as 627 BC till 587 BC. They were troubled times as the Babylonian empire was becoming strong. Jeremiah was present in Jerusalem when it was twice seiged and eventually destroyed by the Babylonians. Despite his reluctance, he became a powerful voice of God among the people. Like Jeremiah, we might think that we do not have the ability to be good witnesses but It is God who calls us and tells that he can do great things in us. Today we have optional prayers for St Charbel Maklouf, who lived in Lebanon from 1828 till 1898. He became a Maronite monk, was ordained a priest. He had a reputation for holiness and an ability to unite Christians, Moslems and Druze peoples.He spent the last 25 years of his life as a hermit. He was declared a saint by Paul VI in 1997.