Poor Lightning Bug

Hearing the Word of God today

Isaiah 55:10-11

Thus says the LORD: Just as from the heavens the rain and snow come down and do not return there till they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to the one who sows and bread to the one who eats, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; my word shall not return to me void, but shall do my will, achieving the end for which I sent it.

            I love words.  I feel a very intense joy when I find just the right word to express an idea or feeling.  That’s why Mark Twain once said: “The difference between the right word and the wrong word is like the difference between lightning and the lightning bug.”  Wow, that’s a vivid way to make the point!  Another great wordsmith of American history was Abraham Lincoln.  Who can forget his Gettysburg Address?  Listen to these opening lines: “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.”  In just two minutes Lincoln delivered arguably the greatest speech in American history.  Now, here's the funny thing.  Lincoln wasn’t even the main speaker that day.  Do you remember who gave the keynote address?  Me neither!  The difference between the two speeches was like that between lightning and the lightning bug.  No one remembers the poor lightning bug!  Lincoln chose each of those words with care and purpose and such simple syllables galvanized the whole nation.  Words are powerful and should be used with a purpose.

            No one used words as well as the prophets of the Old Testament.  In the first reading today, Isaiah speaks about the power of the prophetic word.  The Lord says through Isaiah: “My word shall not return to me void, but shall do my will, achieving the end for which I sent it.”  In other words, God’s words always strike like lightning from heaven.  They are powerful and purposeful, and the prophets wielded those words with great effect, greater than the effect of Mark Twain and Abraham Lincoln’s words.  You see, the prophets uttered the Word of God, not merely the words of men.

            Where can we find these divine bolts of lightning today?  Here are three places you can listen for God’s words of power and purpose.  First, you can find these words in the Sacred Scriptures, obviously.  Our attitude toward the Scriptures should be like that of Jeremiah, who said, “When I found your words, O Lord, I devoured them.  They became the joy and the happiness of my heart” (Jeremiah 15:16).  Catholics are rightly criticized for not reading the Bible; we leave them to collect dust on our night stands.  Do you know even one Bible verse by heart?  If not, learn one today, and they will become the joy and happiness of your heart.

Second, God speaks through the sacraments.  What Catholic does not feel a tingle run up his or her spine when a priest pronounces the words of consecration, changing the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus?  We breathe a sign of profound relief when, kneeling in confession laden with guilt, we hear the priest says the words, “I absolve you of your sins…”  Those sacramental words are sweeter than honey.  When we skip Mass and avoid confession, we miss out on God's gracious words.  You see, sacramental words are God’s words, not man’s words; they are lightning, not the lightning bug.

And third, you’ll hear those lightning bolts of God’s word in the silence of prayer.  Often we fail to hear what God is saying to us because we won’t be quiet in prayer!  Have you ever tried to have a conversation with someone who is a “motor mouth”?  You can’t get in a word in the conversation because the other person won’t be quiet and listen!   I wonder if that’s how God feels when we pray to him: we do all the talking.  He probably asks, “When will Fr. John be quiet so I can say something??”  Don’t fill up your prayer time with just lightning bugs (your human words), let God’s lightning strike instead (listen to his divine words).

Please don’t misunderstand me today, I’m don’t mean to pick on the poor lightning bug.  He’s beautiful at night.  But I’ll always prefer the right word over the wrong word.  I’ll forever love God’s words over man’s words.  Look at it this way: if there were a showdown between lightning and the lightning bug, who would you put your money on?

Praised be Jesus Christ!