Dig Deeper into Sunday’s Gospel: Read Matthew 21:28-31 

As a teenager, spending a week in the mountains of New Mexico at church camp was the highlight of my summer. One summer, I not only came home with an invigorated faith, precious memories and new friends, but also a new fashion staple: the “WWJD” bracelet. (Do you remember those?)

Standing for “What would Jesus do?” the bracelet was intended to be a reminder, taken with you wherever you went, to help you consider your actions and align them with Jesus. Mine was turquoise blue, and once it was on, it never came off. My friends started wearing them too, and before long it was the trendy piece of jewelry that became part of every outfit.

When we received the bracelet at camp, we talked about what it looks like to align our actions to what Jesus would do in each situation. As a teenager, the obvious answers came quickly when asked. 

Would Jesus lie about that? Definitely not.
Would Jesus clean His room? Of course He would!
Would Jesus use that bad word? No way.
Would Jesus listen to His parents? Absolutely!

What was difficult, I soon realized, was actually doing what Jesus would do. I have the clearest memory of looking at my wrist after being caught gossiping about a classmate and, with a face burning with regret, thinking, “That is definitely not what Jesus would have done.” 

The essence of the question “What would Jesus do?” lies in our desire not just to recite the correct answer, but to seek the will of God, and then do His will. In our lives, which are often messy and complicated, it’s challenging to even know what the correct answer is, let alone follow through with doing it. 

The Parable of the Two Sons
In the gospel reading for this weekend, Jesus responds to the challenge by the chief priests by telling a parable about two brothers. One brother says he will not obey his father, but then eventually does. The other brother says what his father wants to hear—that he will obey—but then doesn’t actually follow through. 

Jesus draws a stark contrast between the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and the tax collectors and the prostitutes. The Pharisees claimed to know the right answers and were able to recite them without difficulty. Their actions said something different though. Their hearts were so hardened, so blinded by pride, that they could not even recognize the Son of God standing before them. Yet the tax collectors and prostitutes—who clearly had been living sinful lives—saw Jesus, believed in Him, and eventually turned their hearts away from sin.  

Jesus rebuked the Pharisees, saying that following God’s will means promising to obey and then actually fulfilling it. Earlier in the Gospel of Matthew, He went so far as to declare that salvation depends not only on what we confess to believe, but also on what we do. “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven” (Matthew 7:21).

Surrendering Control for Grace
So, the questions arise: How do we know God’s will? How do we, in fact, know what Jesus would do? One of the most important—and maybe most mysterious—parts of the spiritual journey is discerning God’s will for our lives. Most days this is quite literally easier said than done. However, in God’s abundant goodness, He has given us guidance to know His will in the commandments of Scripture, the teachings of the Church, and through the calling of our vocation. 

Perceiving and doing God’s will are essential to the spiritual journey, but they are not done through solving a secret code, memorizing rules, or achieving perfection. They are achieved by cultivating a heart that desires His glory more than our own comfort. More than just obeying the rules, the way that the Pharisees did, God desires our hearts to be conformed to His. 

Seeking God’s will requires us to slow down in prayer and listen for His voice. Turning to God for guidance with big, life-changing decisions can feel natural. But it is in the everyday seeking of His will in our ordinary lives that teaches us how to discern; quieting our hearts and prayerfully asking Him, “Lord, what do You want of me today?” 

When we spend time with Him in His Word and in prayer, we come to know His voice. And when we know His voice, we are led to obey in love. 

In his book, In the School of the Holy Spirit, Fr. Jacques Philippe writes, “In this area, as in everything, we should let ourselves be led by love and not by fear; and, as St. Francis de Sales used to say, we should ‘love obeying more than we fear disobeying.’ We should strengthen ourselves continually in our resolution to be docile to God, mindful that the devil never use our docility to get us upset or discouraged over our inevitable failures.”

Living Your Faith Beyond Words
When our hearts are open to God, His love fuels a desire in us to be docile and obedient to His perfect will. Not because He is an oppressive task master, but because we can trust that the will of our loving Father leads to freedom and wholeness. 

Let’s be honest: we won’t always get it right. Our human nature inclines us toward our own comfort, control, and plans. Choosing God’s will often means laying down our ego, forgiving the person who stole our parking spot after Sunday Mass, staying quiet when we are dying to win an argument, or serving when we feel exhausted. It requires doing what Jesus did: “emptying himself, taking the form of a slave” (2 Philippians 2:11).

The only way that we can do what Jesus did—humbling ourselves to say yes to God’s will, and then actually follow through—is by leaning on His supernatural grace. Starting each day with ears open to hear His voice and hearts open to receive His grace is the only way that we will be able to seek to be obedient to His will for our lives. When we do, His blessing is abundant. He gives us the grace to do what He asks, and changes our hearts in the midst of the question, “What would Jesus do?” 

Friend, let’s open our hearts to God’s will for our lives and think about bringing the WWJD bracelets back. 

With you on the journey,
Laura

Food for thought or journaling … 

Is there an area in your life where you have given God a verbal "yes" but haven't yet followed through with your actions? What makes it difficult for you to choose God’s will over your own plans when life gets chaotic or stressful?

Father, I quiet my heart before You and open my hands to You. What is it that You are asking me to do today? In whatever I encounter, I pray that You give me the grace to say yes to You and obey with a heart full of love. Amen.

P.S. A great resource to start your day with prayer and align your heart with God’s is the Praying from the Heart: Guided Prayer Journal.