Rich in what matters to God

Before I became a sister, I taught at a school in the Toronto area and I had a decent salary. I worked towards paying off my student loans but I also had enough money to spend on leisure, like going to restaurants and travelling to see my family and friends. Around this time my friend Helen began to tell me about tithing - the giving of one-tenth of your earnings to the Lord. She said that God blesses those who give generously to Him and to His Church, citing Malachi 3:10 and other Scriptures to back her point. I believed in God’s promise and made the decision to start tithing.

Each time I received a paycheck, I gave a tithe to my church as a loving return to God for all of His blessings upon me and as an offering for my vocation. At first, it was difficult for me to give up that money. I wanted to do what I wanted to do with my money. Like the rich man in this Sunday’s Gospel reading (Luke12:13-21), I dialogued with myself, and I wanted to rest, eat, drink and be merry with the money I had.  

Overtime I realized that my money, like everything I have, belongs to God. I began to realize that when I gave, I gained, and I actually received more. Let us strive to continuously overcome our greed with the bounty God gives us, not only with our possessions, but also with our time, our strength and our talents.

May we listen to our Pope Leo who said in his address to Catholics (at Rate Field), that “as God gives us His love, He only asks us to be generous and to share what He has given us with others.”

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Reflection by Sr. Faustina, OP

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