Forever Is A Long Time
The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand
till I make your enemies your footstool.”
The scepter of your power the Lord will stretch forth from Zion:
“Rule in the midst of your enemies.
Yours is princely power in the day of your birth, in holy splendor;
before the daystar, like the dew, I have begotten you.”
The Lord has sworn, and he will not repent:
“You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.” (Ps 110:1-4)
We are a short term people. That is really a part of our culture. I discovered this a long time ago when I began hosting pilgrimages to Europe.
We think that our country is old. We look at some buildings and we label them as old as well. If they are one hundred years old or so, we try to get them on the historic register so that we can preserve them.
Europeans laugh at us. Why? Because they have structures that have stood for centuries or, even, for millennia.
So, we sometimes have a hard time when reading scripture like today’s responsorial psalm and we see or hear the word “forever”. Forever is a long time! It is much longer than you or I could possibly conceive.
It boggles the mind to think that God existed forever and that He will exist forever. The concept of having no beginning and no end is enough to short-circuit many a mind.
But ages ago, God promised to be with His people forever. He promised to establish His house forever. He promised to care for us forever.
We might not be able to fully comprehend the concept of forever; however, we can rely on this fact: God has never gone back on His word. He has always delivered. If he says “forever”, He means forever.
FAITH ACTION: Ask the Lord for the grace that you need to help your faith endure through the ages.