St. Joseph's Catholic Church

When Everything Shakes, Hold on to God.

There are moments in life when the things we thought were solid begin to crumble—relationships we trusted, systems we depended on, dreams we built carefully over the years. In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells His disciples that even the magnificent Temple, admired for its beauty and strength, would one day fall. It is a gentle reminder that nothing earthly is permanent. Stones crack. Powers shift. Certainties fade. Yet Jesus does not speak these words to frighten us, but to free us: Do not cling too tightly to what cannot last. Something deeper, something eternal, is being offered.

We all face our own “end times”—personal seasons when life feels uncertain or overwhelming. There are wars inside the heart, earthquakes within our families, betrayals that feel like storms shaking the foundations of our trust. But Jesus says with quiet assurance: “Do not be terrified… Not a hair of your head will be lost.”

These words do not promise a life without hardship. They promise a God who holds us steady through every hardship. A God who sees each tear. A God who walks into the fire with us.
A God who makes sure that nothing we surrender to Him is ever truly lost.

Malachi tells us that for those who remain faithful, “the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.” After the long nights of struggle, there comes a dawn. After the shaking and the uncertainty, there comes a gentle warmth of God’s restoring love. And so, Jesus gives us one simple instruction:
“By your perseverance you will secure your lives. ”In a world that shakes, perseverance anchors us in the only One who does not change.