In today’s Gospel reading from Luke 14, Jesus is dining at the home of a leading Pharisee and He addresses His host.
He tells His host not to invite mucky-mucks to his banquet, because they may invite you back as repayment. “Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
So often we live our lives in a quid pro quo (a Latin phrase loosely translated "this for that") fashion. We do things for others and carry a chit in our pocket, knowing there may come a time when we can cash it in. Our payback awaits. Maybe this even carries over to our relationship with God. "Lord, if you do this for me, I'll ____. Jesus has another idea. Think of it as Quid Pro NO! Do things out of love. Expect nothing in return. When we do that, it frees us from possible resentment and anger. I think someone once put it like this: God loves a cheerful giver.
Father, may we give with a generous heart, expecting nothing in return. Increase our love. Amen.
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