It has been said that God will not test us beyond what we can take.
That is, of course, true, because since it is God who created us, then He will know what are our strengths and weaknesses.
But God can also be a tough teacher. He gives us the test first and then the lesson later.
And as in every test or exam, the teacher is usually silent, while the students are sweating over the questions.
In the 1st reading, the prophet Jeremiah was lamenting with despair about the persecution that he faced as a prophet of God.
And God did not keep silent. He told Jeremiah this: I will deliver you from the hands of the wicked and redeem you from the clutches of the violent.
We may not face that kind of persecution and violence that the prophet Jeremiah faced.
But at times we do feel that the trials and tribulations of life have worn out our faith and we lament as Jeremiah did.
In such times, let us cry out to God with the response of the Responsorial Psalm: O God, you have been a refuge in the day of my distress.
Yes, God is our only refuge. He is our only hope in times of difficulty. Let us keep that hope and that will be the greatest treasure we will ever have.