Homily for Wednesday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time

Many people prefer to avoid being taken by surprise. Many want to know what is coming down the road and when. However, experience tells us that the unexpected happens all the time.

It is that experience from which Jesus draws today’s parables. The burglar breaks into a house at an hour nobody expects; the master arrives home when his irresponsible servant is not expecting him. Jesus implies that there can be an element of surprise in His relationship with us.

The Son of Man comes at an hour we do not expect. This forewarning may be about sudden and unexpected death. Still, it is just as likely to be about the unexpected coming of Jesus to us in our everyday lives. The LORD may call us to do something we had never thought about; He may take us down a path we might never have gone down on our own. The LORD can come to us through unexpected people, people we would never see as the LORD’s messengers. The Gospel suggests that we can always expect the unexpected when it comes to the LORD.