Fr. Bob White - Ground Hog's Day
As part of my part time chaplain duties at Hol Family Catholic I had mass this Friday, Feb 2. In my homily I talked about the old Bill Murray movie “Ground Hog’s Day”. In the movie Ground Hog’s Day Feb. 2 is a day that keeps repeating itself. It stays caught in in that loop until Bill Murray learns to get over himself and live his life a way that makes him more real as a person.
Each day at 600 am his radio alarm goes off. Since the same day keeps repeating itself when his radio alarm goes off the same song comes on the radio. Does anyone here know what that song was? Listen and see if you can name this song. Who knows the name of the song? Yep, it’s Sonny and Cher singing, “I’ve Got You Babe”.
The point the movie makes is this. If we’re willing to get over ourselves life has a way of giving us that second chance. In the movie Bill Murray stays stuck in the same day, Feb 2 until he lets go of his old way of doing thing and lives his way into a new way of doing things. Just like in the movie Ground Hogs Day life has a way of repeating itself until we finally let go of our old way of doing things and live our way into a new way of doing things.
That’s how it was for Job, the guy we heard about in today’s first reading. Poor old Job had had it with life and was ready to call it quits. But God gives him a second chance and things get better.
With Peter in the Gospel we see the same pattern. Peter always seems to be botching things up, getting it all wrong. Remember the time Peter tries to walk on the water? That didn’t go so well.
And then there was the night they came to arrest Jesus. Peter tries to play the hero by cutting off the servant’s ear. But then minutes late in the court-yard he plays the coward by three times denying that he ever even knew Jesus. But again, Jesus is patient with Peter.
On the shore the Risen Jesus gives Peter the chance to redeem himself. “Peter, do you love me?” “Yes, I do. I’m all in Jesus.” So, Jesus tells him. “Then get back in the game Peer and give it your all.” And that’s what Peter does. He gives it his all.
And so, for us. Like Peter, we keep botching things up. But like he did with Peter Jesus gives us that second chance. “Get back in the game and give it your all.” That’s the point of mass. As we leave here today we go out o get back in the game and give it our all.
And if you’re wondering if God is losing patience with you when you blow it think of the toddler learning to walk. A parent doesn’t scold the kid for falling down when it tries to walk. They encourage the kid and keep cheering them on as they learn to walk. And so, with us, when we fall down God doesn’t scold us. God encourages us and keeps cheering us on as we learn to walk with his son.
So, whenever you’re feeling like a klutz botching things up remember God is up there cheering you on. And if you listen closely, you might even hear God playing his favorite songs on the radio. And who knows? One of them might be this song.
