August 14, 2005: Making People Jealous

+THE TWENTIETH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME


St. Paul writes: I glory in my ministry in order to make my race jealous and thus save some of them (Rom 11: 13–14). Isn’t that an interesting comment? What he’s saying is this: I want my people to see how great it is to be a follower of Jesus Christ—to be a real Christian—and I want them to crave that kind of life, too… so they can experience the same joy now and achieve salvation in the glorious life to come.

Think about that. The world, especially non-Christians, should be jealous of us Christians. What would make that happen? Or perhaps the better question is, why isn’t that happening?

Christ’s A-Number-One teaching and command is a one-word instruction: love. We are to love God and love one another. And frankly, there’s nothing that can provoke feelings of jealousy more than being in love or being loved. Everybody wants a piece of that. It makes us happy and secure. It makes us feel safe and important. Love is the best thing in the world.

The problem is, as the old song says, most of us are “looking for love in all the wrong places.” How do we make ourselves feel better? Well, we need to surround ourselves with more things: more money, more toys, a fancier car, a bigger house, a snazzier wardrobe, more gigabytes on my hard drive… Jesus keeps telling us, though, that those are silly things to chase after because we can’t take those with us into the next life… or they can be lost or stolen. Plus, I think we all know that when we get the possession we’ve been coveting, almost immediately it starts losing its luster—and before long, we’re off seeking the next thrill. So it’s not having things that makes people jealous of Christians.

Some people try to find security and fulfillment in non-physical things—like skill, knowledge, training, experience. But like possessions, these don’t provide everything we’re looking for. I may be the best doctor in the world, but I still can’t take away every person’s pain or disease.

No, to be a true Christian—a Christian who can and should make others jealous—doesn’t take money, possessions, brains, talent, good luck or any such thing. It merely takes love… and love properly exercised.

Love, you see, is always going to be based on a relationship. Love God, love neighbor. That is the object of our love. It’s the relationship that inspires the jealousy.

In our self-centered world, though, too many people aren’t willing to put in the work to make a relationship blossom and thrive. We’re quick to allow ourselves to be hurt, insulted, offended… to hold a grudge… to walk away. It’s easy to write off people… to judge them… to put them in categories that don’t suit us. These are all anti-love tactics, because they build a protective wall around us that closes us off to the love of others. That doesn’t make anyone jealous.

Last week, as you know, I took a week and went home to Ohio. Let me tell you about my little trip to the farm.

My niece, who also came out to visit, was covered from head to foot with some kind of mysterious rash that crops up, grows, disappears, reappears, changes shape—and itches like crazy. She’s had it for two weeks, and has been to the doctor and emergency room several times. She, and her parents, were going out of their minds trying to get it diagnosed and treated. Nothing like a suffering child to bring up the panic and stress in the household.

Then there’s my godmother. She’s been a cigarette smoker for close to 60 years and now, unfortunately, emphysema is setting in. She had reached the point where she was holding her cigarette in one hand and her inhaler in the other. Finally, she realized she had to quit smoking… so she did it. Cold turkey. Except she cheated… and that makes the agony of withdrawal start all over. That’s now happened three or four times. Imagine the stress that adds to the house. I cleverly timed my arrival to coincide with this process.

My dog Maggie always enjoys our visits, because her littermate sister was there and the two had a ball playing together. This time, her sister Minnie was quite sick. The vet thinks she might have gotten a bad puppy shot and was probably a bit weak to start with, so she wound up with a canine disease called Lepto. It left her with kidney failure. My sister drove the dog 20 miles each way for daily IV treatments and veterinary exams. One day, in the middle of my visit, when we thought Minnie was out of the woods, she died.

We were also experiencing a water shortage, computer problems, my brother’s stress of trying to race against the clock to get his university tenure materials completed, a relative in the middle of a thousand-mile move, money issues…and probably a few other things that now escape me.

But you know what? There’s not another place in the world that I’d have rather been, because there’s no place else, except with God himself, that I experience so much love. And even in the midst of so much pressure, we still had a chance to laugh… and even goof around with the Clairol bottle. Christian love makes all things possible, tolerable and even enjoyable. And that’s exactly why it makes others jealous.

Good people, it doesn’t matter one whit whether things in life are going your way or whether you’re in the midst of one giant crisis after another. Anchor yourself with Christ with Lord and with other people. Don’t be afraid, don’t be shy, don’t wait another day. Jump into life with both feet and start making people jealous. That’s the way to make God smile on you.



Today’s Readings:
Isaiah 56: 1, 6–7
Psalm 67
Romans 11: 13–15, 29–32
Matthew 15: 21–28