💖 HOMILY - JUNE 21 💖

First Reading - 2 Corinthians 12:1-10 

Gospel - Matthew 6:24-34

In a world that constantly urges us to strive for more—more wealth, more success, more control—today’s readings gently but firmly call us back to the essentials: trust in God, and strength in weakness. Both Paul and Jesus remind us that when we stop trying to master everything ourselves, and instead surrender our lives into the hands of God, we begin to live with freedom, peace, and true strength.

In the first reading, Paul shares a deeply personal and mysterious experience. He speaks of a man—clearly referring to himself—who was caught up into paradise. Yet, instead of boasting about such a profound spiritual experience, Paul focuses instead on his “thorn in the flesh”—a weakness, a struggle that God did not remove despite Paul’s fervent prayers. Why? Because in that weakness, Paul came to understand a profound truth: “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.”

This is the paradox at the heart of the Christian life: God’s strength shines most clearly not in our success, but in our surrender; not in our control, but in our dependence. Paul realized that the very thing he wanted to be rid of was what kept him humble and reliant on God. He stopped fighting against his weakness and began to embrace it, because he had learned that when he was weak, then he was strong—strong in God’s grace.

In the Gospel, Jesus takes this lesson even deeper. He calls us away from worry and anxiety. “Do not worry about your life,” He says—what you will eat, drink, or wear. He reminds us of the birds of the air and the lilies of the field. They do not toil or spin, yet they are sustained and clothed by God. Jesus is not encouraging laziness or irresponsibility. Rather, He is addressing the fearful grasping for control that often drives our lives. He teaches us to live in the present moment with a deep trust in our heavenly Father, who knows our needs before we even ask.

At the heart of this teaching is a choice: “You cannot serve both God and wealth.” We must choose who or what we will trust. When we serve wealth—when our hearts are consumed by financial security, material success, or worldly status—we live in anxiety, always afraid of losing what we’ve gained. But when we serve God, we learn to rest in His providence, knowing that our life is more than what we possess.

Dear friends, this Gospel is incredibly relevant today. We live in a society that idolizes productivity and security. We are taught to worry constantly about the future—our careers, our finances, our health. But Jesus invites us to trust that the God who cares for the birds and clothes the lilies also cares for us, His beloved children.

This trust does not come easily. It requires practice. It requires prayer. It requires letting go of our desire to control everything and allowing God to take the lead. It requires, as Paul shows us, even embracing our weaknesses as the places where God’s grace can shine most brightly.

Let us then take to heart the words of Jesus: “Seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides.” If God and His will are our priority, everything else will find its proper place. We will still work, plan, and act—but we will do so not out of fear, but out of faith. We will live not as anxious owners, but as peaceful stewards of what God provides.

Let us pray for the grace to trust in God's providence, to embrace our weaknesses as opportunities for grace, and to seek His Kingdom above all. Then we will find the peace that this world cannot give and the strength that endures forever. Amen.