PROUD TO BE FILIPINO

The following statements from today's 1st reading empower us to do all things through Christ. We are encouraged by Paul in this letter to the Philippians, I almost wrote to the Philippines because just like them our country has had enough of the share of every circumstance stated here. We can't help but notice how the Filipinos always manage to be a part of the Catholic Church of every culture, nation and country all over the world. I guess, it is partly because of the fact that just like Paul, our country has been through a lot in terms of suffering. In all these things we have to be thankful because we come to a very important realization and eye opener that it is always in God that we find the strength to carry on. For that I should say, I am so proud to be Filipino. Amen. Hallelujah!

Philippians 4:10-19
...I have learned, in whatever situation I find myself, to be self-sufficient. 12 I know indeed how to live in humble circumstances; I know also how to live with abundance. In every circumstance and in all things I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry, of living in abundance and of being in need. 13 I have the strength for everything through him who empowers me...My God will fully supply whatever you need, in accord with his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.

Many people misunderstand the fear of the Lord. Recalling the verse in Proverbs 1:7 and Proverbs 9:10, the fear of the Lord is called the beginning or foundation of wisdom. In Proverbs 15:33, the fear of the Lord is described as the "discipline" or "instruction" of wisdom. They think that the fear of the Lord is something that is good to have when you first start out as a Christian, but that you should grow beyond it. That is not the case; rather, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom because it is one of the foundations of our religious life. It is one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit enumerated in Isaiah 11:2-3. When we are infused with the gifts of the Holy Spirit, we respond to the promptings of the Holy Spirit the way that Christ Himself would. It confirms the virtue of hope. We often think of hope and fear as mutually exclusive, but the fear of the Lord is the desire not to offend Him, and the certainty that He will give us the grace necessary to keep from doing so. It is that certainty that gives us hope. The fear of the Lord is like the respect we have for our parents. We do not wish to offend them, but we also do not live in fear of them, in the sense of being frightened. In other words, it is not a fear of punishment, but a desire not to offend God that parallels our desire not to offend our parents. This gift "fills us with a sovereign respect for God, and makes us dread, above all things, to offend Him. It is always for our own good to have a holy fear in the Lord. It is not the same as fear in the sense that we are just compelled to do something solely because of fear but rather with love and respect. Amen. Hallelujah!

Psalm 112:1b-2, 5-6, 8a, 9
R: Blessed the man who fears the Lord.
...His heart is steadfast; he shall not fear. 9 Lavishly he gives to the poor; his generosity shall endure forever; his horn shall be exalted in glory.

I've always loved watching super heroes films like Superman and Spiderman. They both have extraordinary powers like Superman has the ability to see through walls with laser vision eyes and Spiderman has the keen sense to detect danger even without seeing it or with his back turned to it. All of these are too good to be true and remains to be a product of the imaginative minds of the Marvel Super Heroes Creator. Though, there's one thing we should never forget, we have a Creator who is able to do all marvelous things without exception which is not in fiction or imagination but in real life. And not even Superman and Spiderman in their animated world can see through our hearts but God can. Amen. Hallelujah!

Luke 16:9-15
...“You justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts; for what is of human esteem is an abomination in the sight of God.”