Ambition vs. Divine Calling - Weekday Homily Video

There are two things in our lives as believers that are essential and yet complicated.

• That is; ambition verses divine calling. Ambition stems from individual desires to build a platform and achieve specific results. Calling stems from a form of surrender to God’s will to glorify God.

• Ambition often seeks control and personal legacy. Calling requires obedience and willingness to discern what the Lord is calling you for.

• Ambition often breeds anxiety and pressure “to climb the ladder”. Calling produces inner peace and contentment, even when the path is difficult.

Misunderstanding Discipleship

In today’s gospel we have two disciples, James and John, approaching Jesus with a self-serving request; to sit at his left and right hand in his coming glory. They are fixated on status, power, and prestige. Jesus had just announced to them that he was going to be betrayed, even crucified.

Rather than probably asking Jesus what he might need at this time, charity of human empathy and compassion, walking more firmly with Jesus toward His agony and death, the two because of their selfish ambition only wanted something for themselves. It is possible that they heard what Jesus had spoken to them with their heads but not their hearts. Instead of placing their priorities on serving God and others, they were wound up with power and prestige. It is not these two alone who seemed to be driven by selfish ambitions, the other disciples too once they heard what these two had advanced, a quarrel broke out among them about who was the greatest, who deserved the positions of greatest honor.

Jesus could not grant James and John their request because the values expressed by their request were not the values of Jesus. The petition they had put before Jesus was not of the spirit of God. Their ambitions did not align well with their calling to be true, faithful, committed disciples of His. Along similar terms, to the rest of the disciples he told; whoever wants to become great among you must be a servant, and whoever wants to be first must be a slave of all.”

Cultivate Holy Ambition

How often even us today as followers of Jesus get caught up seeking honors, titles and insignia, thinking that in this way we are honoring God. We struggle with the sin of “Me first” which often creeps into our marriages, our relationships and in our workplaces. Yet Jesus gave himself as our example and model, when he cared for the last and the least, he loved and healed those who were physically mentally and emotionally broken, he offered his life by embracing suffering for our sake.

What Jesus is inviting of his disciple and all of us, is to cultivate a true holy ambition that motivates us to serve others and to advance God’s Kingdom. He wants his disciples and all of us to grasp the fact that when ambition uses God simply as a steppingstone to achieve personal recognition or control, it leads to emptiness. Hence ours should be to strive to align our ambition with our calling to serve God. Godly ambition redirects our drive away from “making name for ourselves, and towards advancing a purpose bigger than ourselves. It imbues within our hearts the willingness to serve with pure motives without expecting anything in return.

• Today’s Readings
  
  
• Father Fulgren’s inspirational homily was recorded live during Mass at the Father Peyton Center today. You can watch the entire Mass on the Family Rosary Video streams channel on YouTube.
  
  
• Join the Rosary (11:30 am ET) and Mass (Noon ET) livestreams on the Family Rosary YouTube or Facebook page, Monday – Friday. Invite your friends and family to pray with you as well.