At age two he was considered a loser.
Although a descendant of the great thoroughbred, Man o’ War, by 1935 Seabiscuit had lost seventeen consecutive races. This seemingly untalented horse slept too much, ate too much, suffered from crooked legs and wasn’t considered big enough to be a winner.
Seabiscuit’s owner lost his only son in a car accident, but loss enabled him to see beyond impediments. “I’ve got a horse that’s too small, a trainer who is too old, a jockey who is too big and I’m an owner too dumb to know the difference.”
It wasn’t until Seabiscuit’s fiftieth race in 1936 that he showed any inclination for racing at all. Then, in 1938, at the much anticipated Race of the Century between Seabiscuit and War Admiral, 1937’s Triple Crown winner, Seabiscuit won by four lengths, setting a new track record.
In March 1940, at the Santa Anita Handicap, Seabiscuit’s jockey, Red Pollard, a man told he would never ride again due to a crushed leg, and Seabiscuit, predicted to never race again after a torn ligament, raced for the unheard of $100,000 prize. Coming from behind, they won the race, clocking the fastest mile-and-a-quarter in Santa Anita history, the second fastest time ever run in America.
During the depression of the 1930s these unlikely creatures turned their impediments into a symbol that being beaten up didn’t mean one couldn’t get up and run for home. Perhaps imperfections are not something to be feared and avoided but loved and embraced.
“Be strong, fear not!” Isaiah declares. Let your eyes be open to see what can be done, that “the lame leap like a stag.” There is so much surrounding us, so much taking place in our lives in and in our world that easily become an impediment – a blockage – to the power of faith.
In the face of constant military and economic threats to their security as a nation, Israel feared for it’s very existence. The Assyrians, a powerful nation four times the size of Israel had finally made good on its threat to over run Israel.
-All that they knew was now in chaos
-They were frightened and confused: ‘where was God?’
‘why us, why me?’
‘why now?’
They grappled with what to do now, in the face of the chaos, confusion and bewilderment that they felt in losing this part of themselves.
-In the midst of all of this, the prophet Isaiah urges the Israel and us to “be strong, fear not…here is your God.”
-you know that the last thing that any person facing a crisis of any sort wants to hear is that there is hope. Somehow it is easier to hear bad news and to swell in the unfortunate experience. Yet, the holy prophet proclaims this challenge to the people because of the covenant that God has made with his people. In fact, it was God’s faithfulness to the covenant that Isaiah knew that God had not given up on his people when it seemed that He had. God’s faithfulness is undeniable when the choices that the people made were not good ones. In fact, it seemed that the more God’s people sinned, complained or left God, the more deeply God loved his people. The undeniabilty of God’s faithfulness moved Isaiah to challenge the people to be strong and have faith in God for God will once again prove his faithfulness to them. Isaiah is echoing God’s desire that the people trust God. The more that they trusted God, the more the fell in love with God over and over again.
If we think about it our faith situations are not that different from the time of Isaiah. Today you and I hear “be strong and do not fear” words ring out in today’s readings. But do we really believe that God delivers on all the promises the prophet talks about? There is a lot in our lives that might be making us fearful and less than strong: -worries about family,
-anxiety over our health concerns,
-wondering if will have enough money to take care of ourselves and our loved ones.
-our struggle with all the varied and daily challenges of life.
Like the people of Israel, we face the constant assault of all kinds of things that can easily cause us to loose our faith. Each day, in the face of many different things, we must military grapple with what to do now, in the face of the chaos, confusion and bewilderment easily befalls us.
-Like them we are: ‘where was God?’
‘why us, why me?’
‘why now?’
In the midst of all of this we are asked not to be fearful and to be strong.
Can we?
Could we?
Must we?
YES, if we are keep our faith focused. Like the deaf mute man in today’s gospel, Jesus wants to speak “Ephphatha!” - “Be opened!” to our faith that we may find the hope and the strength to get through of all our fears.
Yet God is ever present, and ready to lift up all who are weighed down by fears, worries and concerns, big and small. But, do we want to over come our impediments of faith so that we can invite God into the messiness of life in order to be opened to the possibilities that faith offers?
The truth of the matter is that in order to be delivered from or fears and worries we need to want to be healed. Like Seabiscuit’s owner we need to see hope not fear, healing not sickness, the glass half full and the possibilities of what God wants to do for you and me. But, before we can be strong and fear not, we need to let Jesus speak “Ephphatha!” - “Be opened to our tired hearts and wearied souls. When we do our worries, cares and concerns will seem small in comparison to the hope that faith in God’s abundant love brings to all our situations.
Here this morning, God is present among us. Hear he feeds our hearts with his life-giving word and our souls with the love of the Eucharist
-Speak to him what you need,
-Tell him your fears,
-Ask for your healing,
-Pray for your deliverance.
Then, let it go and let us feel the joy of being opened to a life where fear turns to strength and God becomes our best friend.
Today Jesus speaks “Ephphatha!” - “Be opened”
Let’s let him do his things that we may have life in abundance and the assurance that with God all is well for the presence of the living God is in our midst and as we praise and worship him our whole lives will experience newness and life forever.
