Hometown Boy Returns as Wonder Boy

~~~Saint Alphonsus Liguori, 

Bishop and Doctor of the Church~~~

~~~ Jeremiah 26:1-9 ~~~ Psalm 69 ~~~ Matthew 13:54-58 ~~~

...he did not work many mighty deeds there

because of their lack of faith.

Jesus was the hometown boy who became the 'wonder boy'.
When you speak to anyone from a small town they can
tell you everything about everybody.
It is as if they were living inside of an imaginary bubble.

Jesus returns to his hometown and immediately the gossip begins.
The whispers behind his back...the judgments of his actions
are in full swing.
The talk was not just about Jesus, but also Mary and Joseph.
They were not the leaders of their community.
They quietly went about their daily life.
Joseph worked well with his hands and Mary
kept a well organized clean home.
From the outside looking in they were just an ordinary family
until Jesus came back home as an adult.

Sometimes when you live your whole life in the same small town
 you begin to get a type of tunnel vision.
You see the whole world through the lens of your town.
Of course this is unrealistic to believe that all towns would be the same.

When Jesus comes back home at first people were listening to him,
but then skepticism rears its ugly head. 

People began to doubt more,
to question more, to judge more.
Until finally they walked away shaking
 their heads in disbelief.

Now what would you have done if you had been in Jesus' place?
Jesus reacts in the same way any normal person would.
He does not show his true colors; in fact he leaves his hometown.
Those who should have known him best
 believed in him the least.

Jesus never went about forcing himself on those he met.
Even those in authority would not say Jesus forced himself on them.
They had issues with Jesus no matter what he was doing or where he was.

His hometown missed the opportunity of his mighty deeds
 because they were basically hard headed and stubborn.

They deprived themselves of so much grace,
of so many healings.

Jesus conserved his special energy and went elsewhere.
The people of his hometown lacked faith.
They lacked faith in someone they had known as a young child.
Why couldn't they accept Jesus as the master
teacher he was?

What about today? What about us?
Are we too lacking in our own faith to see God's mighty deeds?
Are we content to observe them from a distance rather than
expecting to see them in front of our face?

Is the faith of a mustard seed really enough?
Is that where we should be satisfied?
What if there is more, a greater faith? 

How many people do you think followed after Jesus to the next town?

Maybe no one, maybe their vision was permanently damaged.
Maybe they were afraid to ask themselves the question,
Is there something more outside of our small town?

I cannot speak for you, but I want my faith to keep growing.
I want to be blown away by what God can do in my life...
in the lives of those around me...in my community.

I have been watching the TV series 'Under the Dome'.
The people of this small town are trapped inside a huge dome.
No one can leave and no one can enter.
The whole town is completely isolated from the outside world.

They are left to their own resources from food to safety. 

It is a good study in the frailty of our human nature.
Sometimes the truth is just plain ugly.

We do not live in a dome we have access to the entire world.
We have the ability to see the hand of God
 working his mighty deeds in any direction we look.

We need more faith it is better than vitamins for our soul.
The hometown boy Blesses us from every direction.
~~~Peace~~~