THE FIRST AND THE LAST

If we only think and look back at our lives, we will surely see how God cared for us, through good and bad times. There can never be anyone else but God alone in whom we can find perfect peace as St. Augustine said, "My soul is restless until it rests in Thee." How very reassuring are the words of God in today's 1st reading. When things are not going well with us and we seem to be going astray it is important to always remember these words of God. There are times when we are very unsure of where we are going, how things will turn out and what is in store for us. In times when we are confronted with things we are not familiar of, we can always draw inspiration in this truth that God looks after us the way a Good Shepherd does to His sheep. Amen. Hallelujah!

Ezekiel 34:1-11

...For thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will look after and tend my sheep.

Let us not stray away from the Lord and always stay in the flock that He cares for. We may have heard a story of how a lion attacks its prey by separating it from the flock and once it has cornered it and all alone that's the time it devours it. It pays to always stay in the flock under the care of our Good Shepherd. If we are just to read and understand very well every word said in today's psalm then we ought to find ourselves the most contented and secured person in the whole wide world. There should be no more room for fear, doubt and anxiety. We've got to develop the confidence and faith of a person who have truly believed that the Lord is our shepherd. A sheep without a shepherd doesn’t know where to go and get food. They just stand there looking dumb and hungry. Today's psalm is a reminder and great consolation that we are the sheep and the Lord is our Shepherd. He is the Good Shepherd as stated in today's psalm. He makes us want for nothing more. Amen. Hallelujah!

Psalm 23:1-3, 3-4, 5, 6

R: The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 In verdant pastures he gives me repose. Beside restful waters he leads me; 3 he refreshes my soul. (R) He guides me in right paths for his name’s sake. 4 Even though I walk in the dark valley I fear no evil; for you are at my side with your rod and your staff that give me courage. (R) 5 You spread the table before me in the sight of my foes; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. (R) 6 Only goodness and kindness follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD for years to come.

In today's gospel, envy of other people's fortune is evident because of the complaints of the workers in the vineyard who worked the whole day but was paid the same amount as those who worked for only a short time. The moral lesson of the story in my opinion is that we should stop comparing ourselves with others rather we should focus on how we can improve our work for God. Be confident that we have a just God who is always right in His judgment and decision. At the end of the day whatever work we have offered to God will always be rewarded accordingly because God will never cheat us rather He will always give more than we deserve. We can never really tell what's going to be until the last hour. All of us are saved by Jesus when He died on the Cross in Calvary more than 2000 years ago but continuously in the process of being saved every day. We've got to persevere in our faith and not be discouraged or dissuaded, distracted and tempted by the other side. We have all been forgiven through Jesus Christ but it is our response to this grace that matters most. It differs from person to person according to the capacity we have all developed. We can not be indifferent, neutral, take for granted or neglect this tremendous grace that is offered to us. We've got to take an active part in receiving this grace in order for us to gain the ultimate and total experience of God's gift to us. Amen. Hallelujah!

Matthew 20:1-16

...Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last.”