Honeybees for the Lord

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Today’s Readings: Jer 23:1-6; Ps 23; Eph 2:13-18; Mk 6:30-34 [Link]

This past Wednesday, I stopped by a neat natural foods store in Urbana called “Strawberry Fields.” As I wandered around the shop, I picked up a jar of honey that caught my eye. It had a luscious golden color and just looked very special. I turned the jar in my hand to read the label, and I was amazed at what I found out. It said that a family of honeybees collectively flew 24,000 miles and visited three to five million flowers just to gather enough pollen to produce the honey in one jar. That’s the equivalent distance to a trip around the world—for one pound of honey!

Why would bees go to all this effort? We could say that it’s because God promised us a land of milk and honey, and made all creatures subject to us… but that’s not the full story. Obviously, God could have saved the bees all that work and just given us honey from heaven.

But I think we all know that God doesn’t usually do things that way. In fact, ever since he finished creation, God seldom does things directly. Instead, he uses his creatures as instruments or intermediaries. All his creatures—each in their unique way—become “Instruments of Divine Power.”

Hmmm… “Instruments of Divine Power”… IDPs… I like that!

So, each and every little honeybee is an IDP for honey lovers: us human beings, Winnie the Pooh, and countless other creatures.

This testimonial about our little honey makers could happily end here, but actually, it’s just the beginning. God’s plan is really too big for our imagination, and his gifts are too big for our appreciation.

There’s a vitally important reason why it takes so much effort to produce honey—why busy bees visit 3 to 5 million flowers to gather enough pollen for a single pound of this golden gift from God. You see, as the bees gather pollen for their nest, they also spread it around. They carry this pollen on their bodies from one flower to the next. In the process, they germinate the plants, and this makes it possible for the plants to produce fruits and vegetables. This is by far the most important work of honeybees, since most of the food we eat comes to us as a result of their activity.

The life of the honeybee is one of the great examples of the power and magnitude of the work of God’s IDPs. And the amazing thing is, the honeybee has no idea of all that happens because of its efforts! It just does what it is innately programmed to do. This tiny, but oh-so-important agent of God’s plan doesn’t know it is an Instrument of Divine Power… but it most certainly is.

And so are we!

It’s true! Just like the honeybee, each of us has a part in God’s master plan. As his IDPs, we’re supposed to do what we can to help produce our own version of golden honey to benefit other folks in his creation. And again, much like the honeybee, we don’t know all the results and effects that will come to pass because of our efforts. We don’t even have to think about it. That’s God’s business.

Our mass readings today make this point. God is the shepherd, and we’re the flock. The Lord tells us that we shouldn’t be afraid even though we can’t see where we’re going, because he is guiding us along the right path. And what’s more, God says that he’ll send other people, other shepherds, into our lives to take care of us. In other words, he’ll provide IDPs—Instruments of Divine Power—to accomplish his will in our lives. And the incredible thing is, a person may make an almost inci-dental appearance in your life without every realizing the impact they’re having.

I’ll never forget an episode during my first year of priesthood. I got a call from the hospital in the middle of the night. A parishioner was in Intensive Care and wasn’t expected to make it. Could I come down and give her Last Rites? I stumbled out of bed, splashed some water on my face, and quickly dressed and headed down to the hospital. The details are kind of sketchy—I don’t function at tip-top condition at 2 AM—but somehow, this woman pulled through and made a complete recovery. For her family, this experience was a turning point in their lives. Their faith was reenergized, and they became devout Catholics and mass-goers. And for some unknown reason, they credit me with much of it…

Wow. All I did was to do my job—and not very alertly, at that. I was just a dumb ol’ honeybee dragging my pollen to the hospital that night. God, of course, did the real work. He healed the woman and stirred up her family’s faith. But for some reason, he involved me in the process.

Do you know often this kind of thing happens? All the time!

Think about the so-called “chance” conversations or meetings you have with people while you’re standing in line at Wal-Mart or the grocery store. The surprising words that come of your child or grandchild’s mouth. The magazine article you read in the doctor’s waiting room. The call from and old friend that seems to come out of the blue. All of these may be truly graced moments, masterminded by the Good Shepherd as a way to bless and guide you—without the human agents ever being aware of what’s happening!

When you think about it this way, it can be a little disconcerting. You mean, if I say something uncharitable to someone—or am abrupt or distant with someone—or blow somebody off when I really could give them a few minutes of patient attention—or make an unkind gesture while driving (someone sent me an Internet joke about funny bumper stickers; one said: “Horn doesn’t work, watch for finger”)… you mean, I could be depriving them of some special grace that God wanted to give them through me? Yep. Exactly.

Honeybees can’t do that. They’re “pre-programmed” in nature to do their job. But we people have free choice. We can say, “Nah, I don’t feel like lugging pollen today.” And God won’t force us to.

On the other hand, honeybees also don’t say, “Boy, I feel good today! I’m going to double the number of flowers I’m going to visit.” But we can. We can turn to God in our prayer and offer to be his instrument.

Today’s a good day to pause and think about how you’ve been doing as a honeybee for the Lord. May the Good Shepherd touch your heart and guide you in right paths for his name’s sake. Amen.