20th Sunday in Ordinary Time

            I love watching the Olympics.  I must confess that every spare second I had during the two and a half weeks the Olympics were on I was watching them live or recorded, watching events I had missed thanks to the internet and even pretending I was in the Olympics as I ran and biked.  I began memorizing the commercials.

            One commercial in particular summarized well the Olympic experience.  It began with a shot of a man swimming and his voice, dubbed over this scene, says, “Take a day off?  I don’t take a morning off.”  The scene changed to a gym in which another athlete is going through a gymnastics routine.  He states, “I haven’t had dessert in two years.”  (I haven’t had dessert in 30 minutes!)  Finally, we see a woman on a bike in what looks like a desert climate.  She claims, “You know that popular book everyone has been reading?  I haven’t read it.”

            All of the Olympic athletes have one thing in common—they live for a goal.  Over the past four years, their whole lives were directed towards competing in the Olympics, standing on the podium, and possibly wearing the gold medal.  When they went to bed at night, woke up in the morning, their diet, times of exercise and practice, was all determined by this one goal.

            In his letter to the Ephesians St. Paul states, “Watch carefully how you live, not as foolish persons but as wise, making the most of the opportunity, because the days are evil.”  Like an Olympic athlete, we ought to have a goal that directs the course of our lives.  And this goal is infinitely greater than a gold medal or athletic prowess.  In short, it is the greatest goal in the world—to be in a relationship with God.  If you put God first, your life will change.

            Specifically, I challenge you to make the Eucharist the number #1 priority in your life.  As Jesus says in John 6 today, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you.  Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life…”  The Eucharist is the most intimate we can be with God this side of heaven.

            And I promise you, that if you strive to put the Eucharist first, your life will change.  You will be happier, more joyful and experience deep peace.  And I share this, not only from my own experience, but also from you.  In my short time as an associate priest here at St. John’s I have seen many of you live with the Eucharist as your first priority.  You are an inspiration to me in my prayer life and are some of the happiest and holiest people I know.

            We have a choice to make this day.  We can choose to believe Jesus’ words—“eat my flesh…drink my blood”—or choose to quarrel with Jesus, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”  Make the Eucharist your greatest priority and “taste and see the goodness of the Lord.”