After Jesus was rejected by hometown scoffers, Mark says that “he was not able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by laying hands on them.” That seems pretty dismissive; those who were sick probably considered being cured a rather mighty deed.

But the Gospel and the other readings Sunday concentrate on the difficulties of doing God’s will—the resistance one encounters, the weakness one feels, not to mention Paul’s list of “insults, hardship, persecution and constraints.” There is a relationship between God’s mighty deeds and the willingness of people to accept their own powerlessness. It’s one of the fundamental tenets of Alcoholics Anonymous. It’s been said that the first three steps can be summarized briefly: I can’t. God can. I think I’ll let him.

A charismatic pastor, recently deceased, founded several parishes in my diocese, each thriving in the spirit of the Second Vatican Council. He said at a conference once that he considered the two greatest spiritual events of the 20th century to be Vatican II, and the founding of AA. What a striking statement!

Psalm 123 describes servants who carefully study their mistresses and masters so that they may do what is required. There are several settings available, but if you don’t have a good one in your repertoire, look at Psalm 95, which appears much more often in the lectionary. Its injunction, “harden not your hearts,” is a heartfelt plea to be open to God’s grace.

  “Amazing Grace” (New Britain) is one of those hymns that people either love or detest, for whatever reason. But if your community isn’t fond of it, there are many others, contemporary and traditional, that speak to the need to be open to the voice of God, the need to have faith in spite of difficulties, and the crucial need for abiding humility.