Luke 12:32-48 Aug 10-25 Are we TOO busy?

In this Gospel we learn that the Father is pleased to give you the kingdom, this is incredible!  The kingdom is given, not earned but a free gift.   This is not the only such reference,  in Luke 13:29 we read that "people will come from all over the world—from east and west, north and south—to take their places in the Kingdom of God,".  Jesus says this before his death and resurrection.  God knows that love cannot be forced nor develop in fear.  This is the Good News!  

Transcript

Hello and thank you for joining me for A Psychologist Looks at Scripture! I’m Peter Doherty, a Catholic priest and psychologist, and I’m delighted to have you here.

On this podcast, I blend my background in psychology and scripture studies to offer fresh perspectives on the Gospels. The Gospels offer a continual invitation for us to deepen our faith, find wisdom, and grow spiritually. There’s always more to discover together.

Each episode is about 7 to 10 minutes long.  

Your questions and comments mean a lot to me — your feedback helps this podcast grow and flourish.  

Today, our podcast focusses upon the Gospel from Luke 12:32-48. This Gospel will be read on August 10, 2025. There is a wealth of teachings in this Gospel.  

Today’s Gospel follows up on last weeks Gospel where Jesus is teaching about spiritual treasure.   Jesus starts this Gospel by telling his listeners not to be afraid.  For the early Christians this was very important to hear as there was much opposition to the early Christian faith.   

I urge listeners to take time to reflect on what we fear or worry about.  Fears imagined in our minds often feel worse than the actual experience of fear in real life. This phenomenon is reflected in the famous Stoic observation by Seneca: "We suffer more in imagination than in reality." Our brains tend to exagerate worries and create disastrous scenarios that rarely occur.  These worries often lead to emotional distress, anxiety, and suffering before any actual event happens. We waste our present life stressing over things we can’t control, worry in fact rarely changes our outcomes.  The origin of this tendency lies in our ancestors' survival mechanism, where imagining worst-case scenarios helped avoid danger. In modern life, this adaptive trait can lead to excessive anxiety about uncertain future events rather than focusing on the present reality.  I would also add that often when we worry we under estimate our ability to deal with the crisis or anticipate what we will learn.

In summary, fears in our imagination can feel worse than real life fears because our minds exaggerate potential threats, activate genuine stress responses, and create suffering in advance of actual events, which often turn out to be less threatening than anticipated.  Check out “Direct Message News”, a website for further information on this topic.

Also, in this Gospel we learn that the Father is pleased to give you the kingdom, this is incredible!  The kingdom is given, not earned but a free gift.   This is not the only such reference,  in Luke 13:29 we read that "people will come from all over the world—from east and west, north and south—to take their places in the Kingdom of God,".  Jesus says this before his death and resurrection.  God knows that love cannot be forced nor develop in fear.  This is the Good News!  We can reject God’s love or make choices that minimizes our ability to fully appreciate God’s love.  We can choose to keep our relationship with God on a very superficial level, or we can choose to grow in our relationship with God.  The choice is yours.  

Jesus teaches people to divest themselves from belongings and possessions that hold us back and focus more on spiritual treasures.  There is a call to be ready, to be vigilant and to be fully alive.   Jesus says that the master of the house will wait on servants who are ready.  This would have been shocking to the first listeners who were used to masters dominating, controlling and mistreating them.  

Jesus admonishes   those who know what is right but choose to do nothing.   They will face the consequences of their inaction. He was well aware of people's tendency to procrastinate, which can have detrimental effects on mental, physical, and emotional health. Procrastination often leads to increased stress, anxiety, depression, feelings of guilt and shame, low self-esteem, and diminished overall wellbeing. It also contributes to poor time management, missed deadlines, lower performance in academic or work settings, and reduced productivity. Physically, procrastination is linked to issues such as poor sleep, fatigue, headaches, hypertension, and potentially cardiovascular problems, partly because it may cause individuals to delay necessary healthcare or self-care. For further support and resources on overcoming procrastination and its impacts, I recommend Livestrong.org, BetterHelp, and Opal.

Jesus emphasizes that with much given comes great expectation. He calls His followers to be responsible stewards, faithfully managing what God entrusts to them. Through a parable about servants and their master’s expectations, Jesus highlights the importance of readiness, accountability, and wise stewardship. This teaching underscores that blessings carry corresponding responsibilities—the greater the gift, the higher the expectation to use it wisely for God’s glory and the good of others. While popularly paraphrased in culture—such as Uncle Ben’s line in Spider-Man, “With great power comes great responsibility”—its origins are rooted in Jesus’ words found in Luke’s Gospel.

What, then, are we responsible for? This Gospel message remains highly relevant today, especially for busy individuals facing numerous demands on their time. I have great admiration for those who are actively engaged, making meaningful contributions and positive impacts in the world. However, I am also concerned about the challenges that come with such busyness, as maintaining a balanced life can be difficult.

It is a valuable spiritual practice to pause periodically and reflect on your level of busyness. Consider whether your activities align with your core values. This reflection is not meant as a criticism of being busy, but rather an acknowledgment of the challenges that accompany a hectic lifestyle.

In Western culture, people are often valued primarily based on their accomplishments and productivity rather than their inherent worth. This mindset can lead to individuals deriving their sense of self-worth solely from what they do. A common example is the workaholic—driven and consumed by their activities.

I have spoken with many older adults who, looking back, express regret over not spending more quality time with family and friends. For them, personal relationships and shared moments far outweigh the significance of career achievements and accomplishments.

In the last part of the Gospel, Jesus talks about being ready as we don’t know exactly when the need will come for us to be ready.  I suspect being ready is more than just being prepared for some crisis.  Being ready implies having the qualities of being alert, aware and being intentional.  Being intentional ,—consciously making choices and setting clear directions for your actions—has been shown to be highly beneficial for spiritual health.

Intentional practices, such as meditation, prayer, or mindful living, help you align your actions with your core values and higher purpose. This alignment fosters inner peace, greater connection to yourself and a higher power, and enhances the overall effectiveness and depth of your spiritual journey. Living intentionally and in alignment with your values reduces stress and anxiety, as you focus more on the present and what truly matters to you. This can lead to improved mental and spiritual well-being, with studies linking value-based actions to greater daily well-being and lower distress.

Intentional spiritual practices bring a profound sense of satisfaction and fulfilment, grounding you in activities that have meaning and purpose instead of simply following routines or reacting to external pressures.  I encourage my listeners to check out the book, “9 benefits of Embracing Intentional living” by Chole Mepham for more information.

So, to sum up it appears that Jesus is reminding us that the kingdom of God is ours.  We have nothing to fear.  We are called to action,to  be responsible, to live intentionally and to resist being distracted by possessions or fears.  This is good advice for our spiritual life as well as our physical and emotional life.

Thank you for joining me today. Next week, we will explore a passage from the Gospel of Luke where Jesus challenges his listners.  He is talking about conversion and change.  It’s a tough Gospel but one with wise teachings.  

If you are new to the podcast, I invite you to explore previous episodes, available on major podcast platforms and YouTube.  If you are a regular listener to YouTube, I invite you to subscribe.   I urge you to share with friends who also have an interest in Scripture. Remember that a new episode is released every Sunday, focusing on the upcoming week’s Gospel. Your feedback is always welcome and essential to the continued growth of this podcast.

I would also like to express my gratitude to my team members, Heather Patel Doherty and Richard Coulombe, for their invaluable support in preparing each episode.

For questions or comments, please feel free to contact me at peter.dohertyomi@gmail.com.

May God bless you abundantly.