Disguised Grace

The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.

1 He began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, put a hedge around it, dug a wine press, and built a tower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and left on a journey. 2 At the proper time he sent a servant to the tenants to obtain from them some of the produce of the vineyard. 3 But they seized him, beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Again he sent them another servant. And that one they beat over the head and treated shamefully. 5 He sent yet another whom they killed. So, too, many others; some they beat, others they killed. 6 He had one other to send, a beloved son. He sent him to them last of all, thinking, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 So they seized him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. 9 What [then] will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come, put the tenants to death, and give the vineyard to others. 10 Have you not read this scripture passage:
‘The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
11 by the Lord has this been done,
and it is wonderful in our eyes’?”
12 They were seeking to arrest him, but they feared the crowd, for they realized that he had addressed the parable to them. So they left him and went away.-Mark12:1-12

Rejection. Nobody wants it. Given a chance, we would always wanted to be accepted, welcomed and received in the best way. But in today's Gospel, I cannot help but realize that sometimes rejection is a blessing in disguise, a hidden and strange grace. A few years ago, my job contract ended at the time allotted for it right from the start. Although I knew it was coming because right from the start it was clear to me, I did not really take it seriously. When the day came that I have to go, I was much pained. However, a much better job offer came to me with better pay, better work and more chances of growth. As I look back, I would always marvel and say to God that if my previous job did not end at the right time, the better job will never be given to me. So let's look back on the many rejections we had and see how God weaved His plan through it so that we become better individuals or a much blessed individual.

Image courtesy: artist