The flood overwhelms me. . . . But I pray to you, O Lord.

Our Lady of Mount Carmel (Optional Memorial)

The flood overwhelms me. . . . But I pray to you, O Lord. (Psalm 69:3, 14

It’s easy to see the connection today between the responsorial psalm and the first reading.   You can imagine the mother of Moses crying out to God in words very similar to today’s psalm.   She surely must have felt as if she and her kinsmen were, literally and figuratively, “sunk in the abysmal swamp where there is no foothold” (Psalm 69:3).   Unable to hide her baby boy any longer from Pharaoh’s murderous design, she set Moses adrift on the river in a basket.   All she could do was pray and depend on the mercy of God.

Of course, we know how the story plays out.   God didn’t abandon the baby or his mother.   In fact, Pharaoh’s sister found him and ordered his mother to nurse him.   She received her son back, as if from the dead!   Not only that, but Moses received the education he would need in order to fulfill God’s plan to deliver his people from slavery.

At one time or another, most of us have felt overwhelmed by circumstances beyond our control.   We might think that all we can do is hold on and cry out for mercy, as the psalmist and Moses’ mother did.   We know that God loves us, but at the moment, we can’t imagine how he will bring good out of our dire circumstances.

If that’s how you’re feeling right now, hang in there.   It will take a deliberate act of faith to rely on God’s goodness, just as it took the psalmist in today’s reading.   Everything you see around you may tell you that he isn’t with you, but don’t believe it!   Don’t give in to fear or bitterness; instead, cry out to God.   Tell him your doubts and questions. Praise him for the ways he has been faithful in the past.   Remind yourself that “the Lord hears the poor” when they cry out (Psalm 69:34).

As you hold on stubbornly to your trust in God, you will discover something that might surprise you:   God is indeed holding you in his arms.   You may not understand everything going on around you, but you will become convinced that he will never abandon you.

“Lord, I am choosing to trust you because I know you are working out your good purposes in my life.”

Exodus 2:1-15
Matthew 11:20-24

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