Misleading Appearances

~~~ Jer. 2:1-3, 7-8, 12-13 ~~~ Psalm 36 ~~~ Matthew 13:10-17 ~~~

"...Two evils have my people done:
they have forsaken me, the source of living waters;
They have dug themselves cisterns,
broken cisterns, that hold no water..."

It is so easy to be misled by the appearances of things.

Jeremiah is talking about the wells the people have dug that are defective.

They appear to be collecting water but in reality

they are broken and the water is being wasted.

Recently I was filling the kitchen sink with hot soapy water to wash the dishes.

I thought I had placed the stopper correctly into the drain.

However, a few minutes later when I returned to the kitchen

the water had all drained out.

Initially it appeared to be retaining the water; it was only later

when the water was gone that I checked the stopper.

We can be fooled into thinking because something looks right that it is right.

It reminds me of the saying you can not judge a book by its cover.

The people listening to Jeremiah were confused they missed the true living waters becasue they were too busy digging their faulty broken cisterns.

"...they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand..."

Too often when we are off doing our own thing we miss what is most important.

Where is your living water today?

Are you focusing your attention on the faulty well?

Are you confused?

Are you missing the crack in the cistern?

Are you losing precious living water?

"But blessed are your eyes, because they see,
and your ears, because they hear."

Do you have the desire to really see and to really hear?

How long will you be fooled by imitations?

As a child I wanted to prove my daddy wrong. Whenever he said I would not get something accomplished I worked harder than ever to prove him wrong.

Maybe that was his real motive I never asked him.

Jesus is lamenting the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah.

"...You shall indeed hear but not understand,
you shall indeed look but never see.
Gross is the heart of this people,
they will hardly hear with their ears,
they have closed their eyes,
lest they see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their hearts and be converted
and I heal them."

Today we are in a much better situation; our eyes and ears have

access to the truth.

We can see if we but open our eyes.

We can hear if we but open our ears.

The question for us is once you see and hear, then what?

Is it good enough to just be able to say I see and hear?

Seeing and hearing comes with some responsibilities.

We must in effect keep the cisterns in good repair.

We must be vigilant of even the tiniest crack.

For left unattended a tiny crack can eventually become more serious.

Jesus used parables because they are timeless in their ability

 to convey their message.

We are reminded that keeping the faith is not a one time deal.

Keeping the faith alive requires daily maintenance...

payiny attention to the little details.

Lord, grant us the grace to see and hear the truth in all situations.