Mt 8:1-4
Those of you who have seen the ‘Paradox’ YouTube about Camp Gray, may remember its image of the mountain:
Camp Gray is a mountain where people can come and ‘go up to the Lord.
But, just as Peter, James, and John had to come down from the mountain,
We all have to one day come down from the mountain,
because there is work for us to do in the valley.
Staffers have to leave,Priests have to leave,
And, today, I have to leave.
In our Gospel text had the Lord Jesus come down from the mountain.
My time with you has begun and ended with the lectionary gospel texts being with Him teaching from the mountaintop.
It seems very ‘Camp Gray’ to leave with Him coming down the mountain.
What does He DO when he comes down the mountain?
Immediately, He is back to His ‘normal’ work of healing the sick.
The leper is hesitant in asking, saying, “If you want to…”
But He immediately returns to His work:
“of course, I want to, be healed”
It is a continual pattern of our Christian living that
we go FROM the LordTO be WITH the Lord.
We go:
From the Tabernacle in the Chapel
To serving Him in the person of His little ones,
at table in the dining room;
From receiving Him in Holy Communion
To serving Him in the person of His little ones,
adjusting the straps on their bike helmets.
Always with the Lord.
This must be our vision: “Always with the Lord”.
Not too many weeks from now, you too will have to leave the mountain.
Let, “Always with the Lord” be your vision.
Now:
In the tabernacleIn ConfessionIn MassIn service of His little ones.
Then:
In your daily duties:Study,Love of familyLove of friendsRegularity in prayer.
Always the Lord:
On the mountain,in the valley.
We don’t get to stay always on the mountain, but we do get to ALWAYS be with Him.
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Camp Gray have two posts about me on their Instagram:
A skit on my accent, here;
A little intro post, here, featuring a photo of me before competing in one of the games.
