Aug22026
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Before I was ordained, I made a retreat. Let me introduce you to the staff. The first priest was a recovering alcoholic. They didn’t know what to do with him so they stuck him in the retreat house. The second priest on staff suffered burnout from years of ministry. All he wanted to do was drive a tracker around the garden and wreak havoc in the kitchen. They didn’t know what to do with him so they stuck him in the retreat house. The third priest was retired. Let me share one observation about him. If you hear the dinner bell, you better get out of the way because he will run you over. Yet, after dinner when it is time to clean up, a transformation takes place. He can hardly get out of the chair. In a bent over position, he slowly shuffles past the dirty dishes into the TV room. Three losers, three complete miss-matched personalities, and I made a retreat there. It was a great retreat. Remember the burnt-out priest. The gardens were magnificent, and the food was incredibly good. Remember the recovering alcoholic? He will make you laugh, cry, and feel good all over. He will tell you that you can do anything and overcome anything with Christ. Remember the retired priest? You will walk out of confession with him feeling like Red Sox fans on opening day. You can put the past record behind you and start a new season. Three losers, but with Christ, you will have to book a year in advance.
The Lord tells us in the first reading, come to me, you who are hungry and thirsty. What does that tell you about God? It tells us that God likes needy people. We usually avoid needy people because they are a lot of work. But not God. God likes needy people because he is good at it. Jesus tells the disciples not to send the needy crowd away because He is good at it. Sometimes we are a mess, and that is when we are needy, and that is why we turn to God, because he is good at it.

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