Sunday Homily - December 23rd, 2018 - Believe in Someone

The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary to St. Elizabeth Icon

I. 

Have you ever had someone really believe in you?

Now, I'm not talking about whether you were believable,
   as if you were untrustworthy, no.
     Have you ever had someone BELIEVE in you?

Someone who saw something in you that you couldn't see,
  a talent that you didn't know you had,
    a character that you yourself needed someone to confirm in you?

Maybe you had a school teacher see your dedication,
  and actually take time to tell you that they see your hard work
    and encourage you to keep it up.

Maybe you had a tough day at work,
  and even though it seemed like the world was falling apart,
    you were able to keep your focus and your cool,
     and your boss noticed and told you that they admired your character?

Maybe you yourself saw someone who needed a kind word said to them,
  and you really looked at them and listened to the music of their life,
    and it caused you to write a kind note to them, lifting up their good qualities
      and voicing your support for them.

My prayer is that all of us here could speak about those kind of occurrences,
  because people who really believe in you and support you
    can, in a very real way, change someone's life for good.

Let me tell you about Rick* (name changed for privacy purposes)
  Rick is a young man who is almost 22,
    but when I met him,
      he was only about 13 years old.

Rick is from one of the most depressed portions of the United States:
  a tiny town called Colcord, in the far far eastern side of Oklahoma.
    And Rick was one of the children in this Oklahoma region
      that the ranch I worked for in college ministered to in a Mentor Program:
        think of the program a little like Big Brothers, Big Sisters.

Anyway, I was paired up with Rick when I was a sophomore in college.
  And it was incredibly nerve-racking for me as a young 19 year old at the time.
    Rick was a shy kid, a little older than some of the others,
      but extremely mature for his age, as he had several life circumstances
       that had to make him grow up a little too quickly.

The first few weeks were like any two people getting to know each other,
  with both of us slowly feeling each other out and seeing what each other were like.
    And then it happened: the breakthrough that neither of us expected to find.

We were both HUGE video game nerds!
  Immediately, we had a common language,
    a common speech that we could speak,
     a song to sing in unison.

And through this breakthrough,
  God gave us the trust and the kindness for each other
    that we were able to have some incredibly deep conversations.

We were able to share our brokenness with each other,
  and some of my own I had never shared with anyone before.

And that was when Rick and I had a conversation that changed my life.
  It was 2015, and I was going to be leaving for seminary during the summer.
  We were at the ranch late one Thursday evening,
    and we were talking about trust, and how do we learn to trust people.
      Rick looked at me and said,
       "Mark, I didn't know what it was like to trust someone until I met you.
          You taught me that there are people in this world that I can trust,
            and you showed me that there really are people who care."

Let me tell you what, Church,
  I will never forget that.
    I will never forget that Rick believed in me, for all my imperfections and all my struggles,
      I will never forget Rick's kind words to me.

Because they are words that have kept me afloat through tough times,
  through difficult stuff that I've gone through since.

My guess is that you may have had someone like Rick in your life.
  And, amazingly, even Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ our Lord,
    had a "Rick" in her life as well.

II. 

And Rick's name in our Gospel this morning happens to be Elizabeth!

Yes, Elizabeth, the wife of Zechariah and mother of John the Baptizer.
  Elizabeth, who was a relative of Mary,
    had been barren for years, and yet had finally conceived
      at the foretelling of the Angel Gabriel, who visited Zechariah in the temple.
        [Luke 1:8-20]

And Mary, who traveled to see Elizabeth,
  had just had the same encounter with the Angel Gabriel,
    except her news was perhaps that much more wonderful AND terrifying!

Because not only had Mary been visited by Gabriel,
 but Mary was greeted with honor by Gabriel,
   who told her that she would bear a son.
     But not just any son: THE Son of the Most High God,
       who will have an everlasting reign.

But the dangerous part of the story is that Mary was a virgin,
  betrothed to a man named Joseph,
    and they had not been married.

If she were to conceive a child, even if it be a child through the power of the Holy Spirit,
  she takes her life in her hands,
    as the outside world would look at her and assume she had a child out of wedlock,
      a crime that was severely punished.

In spite of all of this, Mary said the words that took more courage than I think she new:
  "Here I am, the servant of the Lord; let it be according to your word."
     [Luke 1:38 NRSV]

I think Mary travels to Elizabeth with no small amount of anxiety.
  She needed someone to confide in,
    to tell her story of the Angel Gabriel's appearing.

She needed to tell someone she trusted,
  someone who really would listen.

And Blessed Mary received far more than she could have imagined from Elizabeth.
  Because not only did Elizabeth greet her,
    but the Gospel says that Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit
      and said the following to Mary:

"Blessed are you among women,
  and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
    And why has this happened to me, that the mother of my Lord comes to me?
      For as soon as I heard the sound of your greeting, the child in my womb leaped for joy.

And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment
  of what was spoken to her by the Lord."
    [Luke 1:42-45 NRSV]

Not only did Elizabeth welcome Mary,
  and not only did she believe she was telling the truth,
    but Elizabeth also BELIEVED in her.

Elizabeth encouraged her, not only that she was carrying the Savior of the whole earth,
  the King of Kings, Lord of Lords,
    God with us, Emmanuel,
      but Elizabeth also praised Mary for believing Gabriel's message!

Where Mary could have been skeptical, she instead had faith.
  Where Mary could have been afraid, she instead took courage.
    And where Mary could have said no, she instead became the vessel of God's will,
      the God-bearer, the Mother of God.

Elizabeth played no small role in this account,
  as she took the time to listen, to hear,
    and then to lift up and encourage the goodness that she saw in Mary.

Elizabeth BELIEVED in Mary.
  And that, sometimes, changes someone's life forever.

III.

When is the last time you BELIEVED in someone?
  When was a time where YOU took the time to notice someone's God-given character
    and to lift someone up by telling them of the special gifts that God had already given them?

Friends and neighbors, never underestimate the power that your encouragement has
  on someone to whom you truly SEE and LISTEN to.

In our current culture, in which loneliness is rampant,
  in which people are crying out, starving for true relationship,
    do not underestimate how powerful your encouragement can be for someone
      in the midst of that struggle.

Think of all of our friends and neighbors that may be home-bound,
  those that are in nursing homes,
   those that are in the hospital,
    those who have to communal Christmas to look forward to,
   (let the reader understand...)
     and think of how powerful your encouragement could be to someone desperate for God's love.

Because, through the grace of Jesus Christ,
 and the love of God,
   and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit,
     YOU actually ave the ability to change someone's life.

And so, I want us all to really think this week,
  this day,
   this very hour,
    about one person that you could reach out and encourage through careful listening and love.

What if you were to send a Christmas card,
  hand-written, heartfelt card,
   to that one person who needs to hear from someone who sees them and loves them?

What if you were to visit that friend, loved one, or neighbor,
  without any expectation of favors returned,
   and what if you were to listen deeply and tell them that they have incredible gifts from God?

And what if we were to begin to see ALL PEOPLE in this same way?
  Our neighbor on the street corner, beloved of God?
    The business executive of that rich company, another one who Jesus loves?
      The young boy who is immensely gifted through the Holy Spirit that just needs ONE person
        to believe in him?

I challenge all of us here today
  to practice our faith outwardly in the way that we love and encourage
    all of those who we come across.

And, with excitement and love,
  walk into the world,
    love those whom God puts on your path,
      and practice the life-changing skill
        of BELIEVING in somebody.

In the name of the +Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.