“Our image of God creates us—or defeats us. There is an absolute connection between how we see God and how we see ourselves and the universe.” – Richard Rohr
The image that we carry in our minds of who God is shapes our understanding of God and of the relationship that we have with God. Our natural tendency is to make God into who we want God to be, despite the many signs God gives revealing to us just exactly who He is.
If God were capable of making a mistake, the only one He ever made was to define Himself as Love. From that moment on He was forced to give of Himself fully and completely to all mankind. Our God is a God of compassionate love.
The imagery of "faithful relationship" is a constant one throughout Scripture. We are told over and over how our God has embraced us as the ultimate Lover, how he delights in us and how He remains true to His promises to us. We find our true identity in knowing that despite our failures and failings, and despite our sometimes lukewarm and empty responses, God remains as true to us as ever.
It's no coincidence, then, that we enter into "Ordinary Time" with an image that speaks to us of God's faithfulness and steadfastness. Both Isaiah and John use the image of marriage to describe this relationship. Through Isaiah Yahweh tells us: "You shall be a glorious crown in the hand of the Lord, a royal diadem held by your God; and as a bridegroom rejoices in his bride so shall your God rejoice in you." And John's story of the wedding feast in Cana reveals just how much of a concern each of us actually is to a compassionate Lord.
If we examine any miracle story closely, it reveals an insight about our own lives and our relationship to God. This is certainly true of the miracle at Cana where Jesus saves a young couple from serious embarrassment during their wedding celebration. But what does this miracle mean for us? What can we draw from this story that has relevance to our own lives?
The wedding at Cana is a metaphor for our own lives. It tells us that no matter what our state in life may be the best is yet to come - the best wine is served at the end. This is not what we expect. But then again, Jeus was known for doing the unexpected.
Celebrating life is as close as we can come to understanding how deep is God’s love for us and how His ultimate promise to us is one of joy. The miracle at Cana reveals that Jesus prefers to celebrate with us rather than remain distant from us. This is certainly cause for celebration!
And it is precisely because God prefers to celebrate with us that we come to understand and accept our identity. We are confronted with an intimate yet powerful image of God and with the expectation that we are to mirror this image to those around us – a difficult but not impossible task.
If we are to continue the work of Christmas there may be times when the best choice for us is to change some of the water of our lives into wine.
