Many years ago when I was on retreat, my retreat director said something that I have found to be very helpful for my faith life and which has stayed with me all these years. In response to my own self-assured account of how I thought things were going in my life and ministry, he took a long breath, looked me in the eye and said, “You know, Joe, there is only one God and it’s not you.” Therein lies a great lesson of life and faith.

As I reflect on the Scripture readings for today, it strikes me that Naaman, the army commander in the first reading, and the people of Nazareth in the Gospel needed that reminder. There actually is only one God and it is not any of them or any one of us. Believing that truth enables each of us to be truly open to God, but also to be surprised by how the one true God is accompanying me in my life. I believe we each get an abundance of indicators of God’s very real presence with us. But, more often than not, I am surprised at God’s wise and loving guidance and direction. And often it flies in the face of what I had thought it would be and where it would lead.

Naaman was upset at the apparently simple guidance of the prophet Elisha for his healing, looking for something more extraordinary instead. Jesus’ hometown folks could not believe what he was telling them about who he was since they thought they really knew him.

Do either one of those incidents from today’s Scripture texts sound familiar to you? Do you recognize anything like them from your own experience of faith? Is anything like that going on in your life today? If so, remember that there is only one God……and it’s not you.