Treasure Buried in a Field

by Melanie Rigney

Wednesday, August 1, 2007

Wednesday of the Seventeenth Week in Ordinary Time

“As Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the commandments in his hands, he did not know that the skin of his face had become radiant while he conversed with the Lord.” (Exodus 34:29)

“Jesus said to his disciples: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.’” (Matthew 13:44)

Piety

Lord, let my love and faith in you shine and help others find the way to the Kingdom of heaven. Let me never forget the treasure you have placed before me.

Study

http://www.usccb.org/nab/080107.shtml

Are you a bargain hunter?

Some of us make a celebration of shopping, a day-long outing to Potomac Mills or perhaps a weekend with friends that includes the outlet malls at Rehoboth Beach and Salisbury, Maryland. There’s a certain thrill to getting a $900 suit at the Joseph A. Banks outlet for $200, or perhaps a $200 leather bag at Coach for $50. Have you ever patiently sorted through the racks, certain that somewhere, there has to be a size 10 of the shirt you adore that’s 60 percent off?

There’s no cut-rate way to the Kingdom, Jesus shows us today. When we desire it, we must “sell” all we have—our pride, our fears, our arrogance, our petty worries, our love for expensive toys—and buy the field. That’s hard. We all backslide, we all sometimes reclaim the things we thought we had sold. The beauty, the glory of God and his kingdom, is that the field is always there, waiting for us to find our way. And, best of all, there’s plenty of field for everyone, no matter what happens with the real estate market. It’s a seller’s market—and the Lord has plenty for all who wish to commit to the purchase.

Action

Take an inventory of your holdings, the things you own that you must put aside on your journey to the kingdom. Hold an internal garage sale.

A love of money? Select a charity and contribute what would have been your budget for dining out this week.

Pride? Volunteer at a shelter or food pantry one night this week.

A love of power? Humble yourself by letting someone else get the face time you covet.

Don’t tell anyone else why you’re doing it. He will know.