Stewardship Reflection – September 20th

September 20, 2020 — Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time

IS 55:6-9; PS 145:2-3, 8-9,17-18; PHIL 1:20C-24, 27A; MT 20:1-16A

Though we can never fully grasp the infinite perfection of God and His ways, a basic knowledge of Scripture reveals that God’s logic often differs from worldly logic.

Our first reading, from Isaiah, reminds us that God often thinks bigger than we do. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are my ways above your ways and my thoughts above your thoughts.” As His followers we must strive as best we can to think as God does, using our time (and our talents and treasure, too) with eternity in mind.

In our Gospel passage from Matthew, Jesus offers us a glimpse of the “Godly logic” of the Father through a parable of a landowner hiring workers for his vineyard. Some workers are called early in the day, others not until very late. Yet the landowner pays them all a full day’s wage. This angered the laborers who had worked longest. But those laborers were relying on human logic and human calculations. They were not thinking as God does.

This can happen to us Christian stewards as well. We can grumble and complain (at least internally) when we compare ourselves to others and sense that not everyone is contributing as much as we are to the parish, the neighborhood, within our family and so on. At those moments, we need to think bigger!

We must remember that it is a great privilege to have been called by the Father to work in His vineyard. Living the stewardship way of life brings us meaning, depth and purpose.

Let’s embrace this Godly thinking and thank Him for calling us to this way of life.

— Stewardship Reflections by Catholic Stewardship Consultants