December 11, 2016

A young man was walking along a beach after a storm when he came upon a half-buried old lantern. He pulled it out of the sand and rubbed it vigorously. Of course, a genie appeared and offered him a wish — any one thing in the world he wanted. Being a clever fellow, he decided to ask for a gift that would keep on giving long after the genie was gone. Thinking about gold, he asked for the Midas touch. And that’s exactly what he got. For the rest of his life, everything he touched turned into a muffler!

As that joke reminds us: false expectations can get us into big trouble. They can break our hearts and kill our hopes. John the Baptist knew all about disappointment. He is in prison now and looking for a sign — a sign that the long-awaited Messiah has really arrived. John’s message had been rejected by the religious leaders and the King had him in jail. He wanted to know only one thing beyond a shadow of a doubt. Was Jesus really the Messiah?John was disappointed because of three reasons.

  • John was discouraged, first of all, because he had a different expectation of what the Messiah would do. He was a product of his time. Like others of his day, perhaps John expected the Messiah would be a political one who would drive the Romans out of Israel, just as the Maccabeans got rid of the Greeks. He was disappointed because of faulty expectations. Sometimes we are depressed during the holidays because we have faulty or unrealistic expectations.
  • The second reason John was discouraged was because he was looking for all the wrong signs. In answer to the question John’s followers asked, Jesus answered, “Go and tell John what you see and hear?” It seems those miracles were not what John was expecting. Perhaps he was expecting something even more dramatic, like thunder and lightning or plagues as in the time of Moses.
  • The third reason John was discouraged was because he didn’t give God time. John wanted action now! We can understand that, can’t we? But God doesn’t work according to our schedule, but according to God’s plan. Sometimes God doesn’t seem to be working at all, but God is. Certainly he wasn’t working according to John’s timetable. But he was working. The fact we even talk about John today is proof of that.

How about us?  Are we disappointed because we have unrealistic expectations?  Are we looking for happiness is all the wrong places?  Have we learned to wait upon the Lord?  Today’s gospel teaches us about expectations, signs, and patience and, above all that God is at work in our world and in our lives.