Let's welcome Fr. Emmanuel Bekoe to our parishes this weekend, as he is doing Mission appeal in our parishes, I will be doing the weekend masses of St. Patrick parish Onalaska. After that I will be making my pilgrimage of Camino de Santiago in Spain, as we celebrated the feast day of St. James the Apostle on July 25, I will keep you all in my prayers during my pilgrimage in Spain and France. I really appreciate and thank Fr. Kyle & Fr. Biju who will be filling in for me during the four weekends, thanks to our Deacon Edward Wendt who will do communion service during weekdays.

Ask, Seek, Knock

The central theme of the Word of God on this 17th Sunday is: prayer. The first reading narrates to us how Abraham pleaded with the Lord God on behalf of the people of Sodom and Gomorrah! Abraham's prayer highlights a certain familiarity between Abraham and the Lord God. In the gospel reading of today, Luke collects together some teachings of Jesus on prayer – including that prayer that Jesus gave us as the pattern of all prayers.

Often people repeat one of the sentences that we heard read in the gospel of today to emphasize the dimension of faith in asking for favors from God: "Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, and knock and the door will be opened to you" (Lk 11:9). In our reflection today, I would like to see these expressions as an invitation to go beyond asking for favors from God.

Ask: And he will give the Spirit to you!

Asking for our daily needs in prayer does have a place. This is at the centre of intercessory prayer. This is also part of the prayer that Jesus taught us: "Give us each day our daily bread." Asking God for our needs, although He knows our needs even before we mention them, is an expression of our dependence on His providence.

On the other hand, our prayer should not be need-focused. Only God remains the centre and the sole focus of our prayer. Being problem-focused is a temptation in prayer. It is important to realize that we do not pray so that God might solve our human problems, but God is simply worthy of our praise and worship. This is the centre of prayer.

It is also important to focus on the last sentence of the gospel reading of today: "How much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him" (Lk 11:13). Jesus is inviting us to focus on higher gifts. Even in the "Our Father", besides asking for bread, Jesus invites us to pray: "may your name be held holy; your kingdom come; forgive us our sins; and do not put us to the test." These are higher gifts to ask for. And prayer needs to focus on them.

Seek: And he will show Himself to you!

For instance, the Psalmist prays: "It is your face, Oh Lord, that I seek. Hide not your face from me" (Psalm 27:7-8). Or David tells Solomon, "As for you, Solomon, my son, know the God of your father and serve him with a perfect heart and a willing soul… If you seek him, he will let himself be found by you… (1Chr 28:9).

In the gospels there is a new dimension to the word, "seek". It is not merely that we human beings seek God, but it is God who seeks us out. Jesus would emphatically state, "The Son of Man has come to seek and to save the lost" (LK19:10). So, another important aspect of prayer is to seek the face of God, but above all, to become aware of the God who seeks us out. This takes us to the third aspect of today's reflection.

Knock: And you will find that it is He who was knocking!

The word "knock" is used in two contexts in the New Testament. First, in the context of prayer as we heard in the gospel reading of today. Second, in the Book of Revelations: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If one of you hears me calling and opens the door, I will come in to share a meal at that person's side" (Rev 3:20). Therefore, after all, it is not we who are knocking. It is God in Christ who is knocking at the door of our heart. So then, is prayer becoming aware of the sound of the knock of God at the door of our heart?

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