Sunday Homilies with Fr. Mike Schmitz - 03/06/19 Behind Enemy Lines: Isolated and Disoriented

Episode Date: March 7, 2019

Homily from Ash Wednesday. You are in a fight; what comes next? For many of us, our default assumption about life is: it’s fine. Even when things are obviously broken, we can pretend that they will “fix themselves.” But Lent reminds us that we are in a battle that won’t be won unless we are ready to engage the enemy who will attack us like our Lord was attacked in the wilderness...behind enemy lines. Mass Readings from March 6, 2019: Joel 2:12-18 Psalms 51:3-6, 12-14Corinthians 5:20—6:2 Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18 Download the Homily Study

So a little while ago, my car, actually it was like a year ago, all the lights on my car, I'm on the dashboard turned on. And I'm no mechanic, but I figured that meant something bad. And I was right. And so I took it into the shop because that's what you do when all the lights on your dashboard come on. And they were like, we fixed it. And they did fix it. For the mile, it took me to drive off the lot, and then they came back on.

And so I took it back. I'm probably, in the last year or so, I've taken it back to the shop maybe four or five times. And then I just stopped taking it back. And my thought was this. Like I tried, maybe it'll just fix itself. Again, no mechanic. Kind of a car expert. But that was kind of, I mean, even though I was like,

well, no, I made an effort. You know, I took it in and nothing changed, nothing got any better, but also nothing got any worse. And so, you know, I don't know, if it'll just keep driving, it'll fix itself. And then after a year, like just a couple days ago, the lights just went off. Fixed itself.

See, I'm not as dumb as some people think I'm am. No, either it fixed itself or like the alert lights just burnt out. So I don't have two problems. The one is that the car doesn't work and that the lights don't alert me to anything. Because that actually could be a thing, right? You kind of just wait long enough. It'll fix itself. It'll get better on its own.

And then it's just like, no, even the indicator that something's wrong doesn't even go off. You find yourself in a lot of trouble. I think that I sometimes assume, like, if it's all running, if everything seems to be going along, that I just, I think I sometimes assume that everything's fine. Like, we're still driving, the car still starts, I can still drive through the snow and stuff. I just assume that it's fine, it'll just, it'll keep being fine. And so I just ignore it, because I assume it'll be fine. And I think a lot of us live life like that.

Like, we can even have alerts that are saying, like, actually, you know what, not everything's fine, but you're like, no, are you kidding me? I haven't like completely made a wreck of my life. Like, it's fine. We can sometimes have this attitude that's like, even if I know, I know the lights are on, I'm getting the alarm, it'll probably fix itself.

Because I think sometimes, maybe not you, but I think sometimes the way we approach life is just, our default is that it's just, it's going to be fine. Rather than actually looking for like, oh, I'm saying like I guess, looking for trouble. Rather than looking for trouble. And I don't mean like looking for trouble in the sense that like I'm a cruise and he's like, you know, trying to find someone.

But I read a story recently about a guy who went up for a ride along with a friend of his who was a police officer. And he said it was a fascinating experience. One of the reasons it was fascinating is because he just thought we would kind of like cruise around the streets and if we saw like, you know, someone breaking into a bank, then we'd stop. Or if we saw like some person like pushing someone on the side of the street like, hold there. Citizens arrest, you know, whatever. But he said the whole time you're driving,

my friend, his cop friend, was busy. They pulled behind a car, and he would just, with one hand, one on the steering wheel, one hand on the little cop computer, he would put in the license plate of the car, whatever car was in front of him, and just run the plates. And it came back clean? No problem. Go on to the next car. Run the plates. He was always looking for trouble. If it came back, we're like, oh, no, this person has an arrest,

this person has a warrant, this person has something, then they would track it down. But he went out looking for trouble. And the guy was saying, like, I don't do that in life. Like, I just think, looks peaceful. It's going to stay peaceful. No one's making an obvious mess of things, so I'm sure everything is completely fine.

And he says, that's why I'd be a terrible policeman. Because cops have to look for trouble. Because they want to spot it. When things look peaceful, but they're actually not peaceful, they're the ones who actually take that step forward and say, actually care about you more than I care about what looks like peace. I care about stopping whatever could be wrong,

more than I like just kind of like the idea that it'll be fine. When I read that story, I was just like, oh my gosh, this is me. Because in so many ways in life, I just, I'd be like, let's go for a ride-along. If we see any trouble, we'll stop. If we don't, it's fine. And I forget sometimes that actually there's fights happening all the time. In fact, we're in the middle of a fight. Like, that there's a battle going to happen all the time, and we're in the middle of a battle.

In fact, one of Scripture's most profound, like used often, more often, descriptions of what it is to be a disciple of Jesus is to be in a fight. Scripture again and again talks about like, okay, here's what it is to follow Christ. You are in the middle of a battle. The scripture, when it talks about what it is to follow Christ, is like, okay, this is what they call spiritual combat. I know that sounds super strange for those of us who are like, are you kidding. Father, that's so outdated. Like, we're not, we're in a place of peace right now.

We're in a place of not trouble right now. We're in a place where there's nothing wrong. Everything is going to be fine. And yet, if we look at this Sunday upcoming, Sunday's gospel. We realize that everything is not fine. And the reason we're looking at this upcoming Sunday's gospel is because you don't have Mass on campus.

And I want to give you guys a sneak peek. This upcoming Sunday's gospel is from the gospel of Luke. And it says that after Jesus gets baptized, in Luke chapter 4, it says, Jesus was filled with the Holy Spirit and returned to the Jordan, and he was led by the spirit into the wilderness. He has a Holy Spirit. Now, he's led by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness. Now, sometimes we might say, oh, yeah, he went there to have a little, you know,

month and a half spa time. Went into the wilderness. See that clean desert air just really was good for him. Or we have this sense of like, yeah, Jesus went into the wilderness because he needed to recharge his batteries. He didn't want to collect himself

before he went on the public ministry. That Jesus went into the desert, went into the wilderness to kind of get away. He didn't. Scripture is very clear about the reason why Jesus went into the desert. He went looking for trouble.

In fact, it says this. It says, he was led by the spirit into the desert. for 40 days to be tempted by the devil. Jesus went into the desert. He went into the wilderness, basically looking for trouble. He went into the wilderness led by the Holy Spirit because he was preparing, actually not so preparing.

He was going to pick a fight. He was going into battle. He was going behind enemy lines. This is what it is. Jesus going into the wilderness for 40 days is him going behind enemy lines. So that's what we're doing. This lent, we're doing a series during this season.

And the series is behind enemy lines. It's like, what is it to actually, Jesus went behind enemy alliance? He spent 40 days battling. He spent 40 days fighting. He spent 40 days behind enemy lines. And this is where we live. We live behind enemy lines. And so few of us know actually what it is to live behind enemy lines.

And now, here's the thing. I can imagine some of you are thinking one of two things. One is, Father, seriously, I am so tired. Why is the season or this series of Lent like all going to be all about fighting? Why does it have to be all about fighting? up battling. I'm just done. Have you guys seen the video of the four-year-old hockey player? Oh my gosh, she has like seven and a half million views. It's awesome. His dad is a coach and he

miced him up and this little four-year-olds out on the ice and he's just like at some point he's having fun. He's like, you know, skating one, two, one, two, and he's calling out to his friend. Braden, I'm here, you know, kind of thing. But then as the practice goes on and on, the kid is flat on his face on the ice. He's like, my engine has run out of gas. And I can imagine so many of you are like, Father, please don't go behind any lines. My engine has run out of gas. I am just completely tired of this. I want, listen, here's what's going to happen.

I'm going to keep going, and the car is going to fix itself. I promise. For this length, can I please be a non-combatant? Because I'm tired, and I understand if you're tired. But there's only one option. If we're going to actually walk like Jesus walked, he went into the desert. He went behind enemy lines, and he did it not to get away. He did it to engage.

At the same time, the other thing, imagine you might think is like, oh my gosh, are you seriously? Using this imagery. I do not like the battle imagery. I don't think you probably should paint your face and do all this brave heart speech. I don't need a rah-rah kind of a thing. In fact, I understand that because I do not respond to that kind of motivation. Like if I go to the gym and someone's like, come on, man, you got it. I'm like, just, shh.

No, that doesn't work with me. You just need to talk low. Like, you got it, buddy. I'm like, I can respond to that kind of. Because, again, I don't think that when it comes into this behind enemy lines, this time that we're spending really truly in battle. I don't think that actually crying out and getting pumped up is the answer. I don't think that's what we need.

I think what we need is someone to tell us, here's what's happening, here's what's going to happen. You're behind enemy lines. Here's what's happening. It's what you're going through. Here's what's going to happen. That's why this moment I have this picture. Remember the movie Taken? So here's Liam Neeson, right?

And he's the dad of this teenager who goes on vacation up. to France with her friend and at one point she's on the phone with her dad at the, at their apartment, and she sees these men breaking in and grabbing her friend. And her dad says, okay, run to the, bedroom, get underneath the bed, and then I'll tell you what to do next. So she does this. She thinks she's going to escape. She thinks she's going to get out of there and she gets into the bed. She's going, Dad, I'm here. And he says, these words, he says, now the next thing I'm going to say is very important. They are going to take you. It was very calm. very clear, here is what's happening.

Now the next thing I'm going to say is very important. They're going to take you. And this is so clear for us. He didn't say, you can do it. You can come out from underneath the bed and start fighting and kicking and biting. He doesn't say, he says, here's what's going to happen. They're going to take you. Because you need to know what's going on, so you know what's going to happen next.

And I want to tell you, here's the enemy strategy. Here's what he's going to do. the enemy's strategy for all of lent, but especially for the next week and a half, his strategy is this, to isolate and disorient you. He wants to isolate you and disorient you. He wants to make you feel alone and unknown.

It's what he does all of the time, especially over the next week and a half, when we're going to disperse to wherever we came from or we're going to be alone and we're going to feel alone and unknown. And this is what he wants to do to take you out of the battle. I think about that, like, I'm sure we've all experienced this, that been isolated and disoriented. I'm just on my own now.

I don't know what to do. I'm disoriented. I don't know who I am. I am alone and I am unknown. I just want you to hear Liam's niece's voice in your head right now. Here's what's going to happen next. He's going to try to get you alone and make you feel unknown. So here's what you need to do.

When there's that temptation, when the enemy tries to make you feel alone, here's what we have to realize how many of us have been taught to do Lent alone. Every one of us have been taught to do Lent alone. In fact, even the gospel is almost like, hey, shh, don't tell anyone

what you're going to do for Lent. Just do it alone. That's not actually what Jesus is telling us to do. He's like, don't show off. Don't pretend to pray when you're not really praying. Don't pretend to fast when you're not really fasting. He didn't say you have to do it alone. Isolation weakens us.

But you and I need to be strong, especially over the next. week and a half. So here's the question. Who are two or three other people that you know who are doing Lent this year? Who are two or three other people that you know are they're pursuing, they're in the battle too. They're following Jesus into the wilderness. How about you connect with them today on the first day of Lent and say, hey, I recognize that I want to live this Lent differently and I'm going into battle and one of the

tactics is going to happen. Here's what's going to happen. I'm going to go home and I'm going to feel alone. I'm going to stay here in Duluth and I'm going to feel alone. But I can't make it if I'm alone. And to ask those two or three friends, hey, can we be like a group? Can we kind of be like a band? Can we not like a band of brothers or a band of sisters? Can we do lent together this here. Because you know what St. Peter said about the enemy. He says, Satan prowls like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him solid in your faith. Some of you have seen, have you seen the human planet, the documentary Sun, things like Netflix. You've heard of Netflix before? Okay. So it's this documentary. It's awesome. It's basically a bunch of different

environments around the world, really hostile environments where human beings have been able to not only survive but thrive. It's super awesome to see like how human beings can adapt and live almost anywhere. And one of them is like the savannas of Africa. And they followed this group of tribesmen, three men who left their village to go hunting. But the way they hunted was just blew my mind. They would find a pride of lions and they just followed them. Pride of lions that were the lions were hunting. They followed the lions until the lions would get like an antelope or a wildebeest. I just got to have a wildebeest. And in the that, remember Lion King, you guys?

Okay, so they followed this part of lions, and they actually take down a wildebeest. And to what these three men do is they just see these like dozen or more lines devouring this wildebeest, wildebeest, and they just stand up and they slowly start walking shoulder to shoulder. And they just walk towards this dozen lions. They're eating the wildebeest. and the closer and closer they get shoulder to shoulder to shoulder

the lions look up and they see them and they run away and they give them enough time for two guys to stand the lookout and one guy to cut off a leg and they throw it over their shoulder and they walk away you think like if one of those guys were to try to walk up to the line the lions would I mean even one line

would take out the one guy one lion could take out all three of those guys but they don't because they didn't do it alone They weren't willing to face down the lion or the lions one-on-one. Why? Because the lion, our enemy, he wants you to go one-on-one. He wants you to make you feel alone. Like you have no one.

But you don't have no one. You have brothers to run with. You have sisters to run with. You have someone to fight with. You are not alone. Even though he wants, he's going to make you feel like you're alone. And he's going to make you feel disoriented. He's going to try to make you feel like you're unknown,

like you're not actually who you know you are. You're going to hear this Sunday in the gospel. That when the evil one comes to Jesus, he says these questions, he says, if you are the son of God, turn these stones into bread. Adirani says, if you are the son of God, throw yourself off of the parapet of the temple. See, what he does is he doesn't attack his ability. And Satan won't attack your ability or your strength.

He attacks identity. He says, are you really, if you really are the son of God, and he's going to do this to you too. If you really are a child of God, then he's going to try to make you feel like you are unknown, like you have no one. This is what he does. It's one of the reasons why it's so powerful to be here this day. And to remember what's going to happen in just a few minutes from now. Because what's going to happen in a few minutes from now is we're all going to get up, right? And we're going to make a decision.

Either I'm a non-combatant. I'm going to stand the sidelines. Don't come up. Don't come forward then. That's okay. You don't have to. It's not required. If you want to be a non-combatant and say, I think it's going to fix itself, just stay where

you're at. It's no big deal. No one will judge you. Maybe the people in the front row because they're all judgy in front row. Just kidding. But you don't have to. You can say, I prefer to be a non-combatant. I think it'll fix itself.

But if you're like, no, I realize, what are you're telling me the truth? I've faced it before. I know that what he does, he makes me feel alone, he makes me feel unknown. It makes me feel isolated and disoriented, and I don't want to do that. I realize I'm in a battle. I realize Jesus has won the war, but I'm still in a battle. So I'm going to come forward, and what are you going to do? You're going to receive ashes.

And you're going to hear these words. Repent and believe in the gospel. That's the words. Repent and believe in the gospel. And if you say amen, what that means is I'm stepping off the sidelines. I realize where I'm at. I'm in the wilderness. And what's going to happen in that moment is you'll receive crosses on your forehead.

And we all need to remember that cross for the next 40 days, particularly when we're tempted to feel unknown. Because that cross means something very specific. It means that Jesus knows you. It means that God knows you. Because here's what we believe as Catholic Christians is that God didn't die for y'all. Jesus didn't die for y'all. He died for you specifically. When you come forward to receive those cross, that one cross, that is God's voice saying,

listen, you are not unknown. You're mine. You are not unknown. You're mine. You are not alone. I am with you. These next 40 days is going to be what life is, which is behind enemy lines. But thanks be to God, we're going to be able to learn how to live life as Christians, which is to live life behind enemy lines, not afraid and not powerless, and not alone and not unknown, but claimed by him, redeemed by him, and ready to fight with him.