Last year one of our Grandmas couldn’t be with her Grandchildren on Halloween because they lived out of state.
So rather than sit home alone and sad, she packed up her car with lots of candy and a box of old matchbox cars left over from her kids and parked in our parking lot for trunk or treat.
As the kids came through she offered them a piece of candy and once in awhile she would pull out the toy car box and offer one of the cars too.
She told me it was a wonderful night and she was so happy to see all of the children.
A little boy probably around 2 ½ came to her trunk and he found a small matchbox car that he loved he looked at it and looked at it and wouldn’t let go of it or put it in his bag no matter how hard his mom tried to get him to do it.
When he came to the next car he had a big problem the candy bag was in one hand and the car was in the other and he couldn’t figure out how to get his candy because he simply refused to let go of the car or the bag.
The rich young man in the gospel was a good person
He kept the commandments,
He didn’t kill anyone
He didn’t commit adultery,
He didn’t steal or lie,
Yet there was something going on in his life, he longed for something more something different.
It was obvious that Jesus was touched by this desire to live a better life.
And so Jesus offered him another way to live another way to find happiness.
And with love he said “sell what you have and give it to the poor and your will have riches in heaven, then come follow me.”
Jesus understood that his had to be the next step for the young man.
You see even though he didn’t He didn’t kill anyone
He didn’t commit adultery,
He didn’t steal or lie,
there is no indication that he ever did anything good for anyone either.
Being generous, sharing or giving what he had to others would have radically changed the young man’s life.
Letting go of his wealth, his security, his position and prestige would have freed him up to love more and be more dependent on God’s love.
But alas he just couldn’t bring himself to do it.
He wanted something different but he just couldn’t let go of what he had so he was trapped.
Just like the little boy at trunk or treat who couldn’t bring himself to put down the bag or let go of the car or even put the car in the bag..
You know we priests talk to unhappy people all the time.
People rarely ring the doorbell to say gee father I’m happy, life's great, things are going well.
Often people who come to us find themselves at a crisis point or a difficult moment for themselves or someone they love.
Frequently when we offer them alternatives or speak of other choices they can make but they just can’t bring themselves to do try anything new.
They want something different out of live but they just can’t bring themselves to change anything or let go of any of their old habits..
All of this should call us to ask ourselves
What am I holding on to?
What do I refuse to let go of ?
What is keeping me from changing.
All of us have something which holds us back otherwise this church would be full of saints instead of wannabe saints.
For the young man couldn’t bring himself to let go of his riches.
even though they didn’t satisfy him.
And that’s why Jesus said… It’s so hard for a rich man to be saved.
So how can we figure out what is really important in life?
How can we know what to hold onto and what to let go of.
The answer is found in the first reading.
God promised King Solomon that he would give him anything he asked for:
Power riches, influence, health and easy life and instead Solomon prayed for wisdom
Wisdom is simply the ability to see things and understand things as God sees them.
When someone is wise they know what really matters and what doesn’t
When someone is wise they understand what they should hold onto and what they can let go of.
Let us all spend our lives seeking to see as God see, understand as God understands and live as God would have us life
For if we do we won’t ever have to walk away sad like the rich young man in the gospel who just couldn’t let go of things that just didn’t make him happy.
Amen
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