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Trust in God: The jar will not run dry

		Living the Scriptures  with St. Paul University  Catholic Center  David Carrano

Many times throughout our lives, we can feel like our jar is running dry. Like the poor widow in 1 Kings, we Christians are often confronted with moments of dryness and perceived emptiness in our spiritual lives.

The widow's reaction is altogether natural, yet it can be understood in two very different ways. As she says, "when we have eaten . . . we shall die." Perhaps, given the truth of her misfortune and the sorrow over the thought of her son's death, she is giving in to her fears.

A closer look, however, reveals that her charity survives despite her difficulties. Would one close to despair willingly offer a stranger a portion of her last meal?

32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Sunday, Nov. 12, 2006) 1 Kgs 17:10-16 Ps 146:7, 8-9, 9-10 Heb 9:24-28 Mk 12:38-44 or 12:41-44

The woman's reaction, then, can be seen as confronting the reality of her trials and as humbly and faithfully entrusting her cares into the hands of God.

Even as a seminarian for the Diocese of Madison I am not exempt from periods of dryness in prayer. Yet through God's grace I continue to prepare for priesthood and, in fact, am ever more encouraged as I realize that God's faithfulness is revealed particularly in my times of trial.

In these times I am also often given a deeper knowledge of myself and of my need for humble resignation to the will of God. Though the jar may seem empty, the Holy Spirit is at work in me, and nourished by my daily bread in the Eucharist, my jar does not run dry.

When confronted with difficult times, what better way to show that we trust in God than to be ever more generous and place ourselves completely into God's hands? The widow, just like the one in the Gospel, offers everything she has to Elijah. In this act of charity her poverty is transformed into an indescribable wealth.

We, too, can overcome our fears through charity. When we persevere in this way through our difficult times, ultimately that hope will lead us to Eternal Life.

The important thing to remember during times of trial or dryness in prayer is that it is not our responsibility to fill the jar . . . all we can do is draw from it and generously share what we have been given. Jesus is the one who mediates for us, pleading for our sakes at the right hand of the Father.

As the Letter to the Hebrews says, Jesus entered heaven to "appear before God on our behalf." We cannot and need not take Jesus's role: He is the mediator, and we are the beneficiaries and participators in the grace that results from His mediation.

	Reflection questions • How do I respond when I experience times of trial? • In what ways can I give of myself more fully to allow hope to overcome my fears?

Again, as St. Paul says, "we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Holy Spirit itself intercedes" on our behalf (Rom 8:26 NAB).

It is the Holy Spirit, too, who fills us with charity and the hope of heaven. Indeed, renewed by this hope and strengthened by our charity, our jars will never run dry.

David Carrano is a seminarian for the Diocese of Madison, currently in his first year of theological studies at the Pontifical North American College in Rome. He attended UW-Madison and St. Paul's from 2000-2004, after which he entered the seminary.

St. Paul's Web site is www.stpaulscc.org

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