Have you ever won in a raffle? I did. It feels great! Although
this happened 5 years ago I could never forget when I won a $1000 gift card in
a Nurse Expo at Long Beach
because it was very memorable and significant in many ways. I never thought
that my name will be drawn. I was just sitting there looking after the bags and
the tons of souvenir items of my nurse companions when my name was called. I
can't believe my ears! From out of the many entries, my name was picked. Not
just that, I still do not have my license yet so I needed to give them proof
that I am a USRN. It was good that I brought the letter from the California Board
of Registered Nursing stating that I already passed and they were kind enough
to accept it. Up to this time that gift card remains useful for me because I
bought a laptop and a camera out of it. I felt that it was exactly what I
wanted to buy back then even though I already have a desktop computer which I
can use because I was still living with my aunt then. I never thought that I
would be moving out of their house and would be needing my own computer in
order to communicate with my family in the Philippines and of course to make a
journal of my daily walk with God such as this one to proclaim His word and His
glory. God knows exactly what we will need even before the need arises and for
that I say, "It is indeed a gift of God!" Amen. Hallelujah!
Ephesians 2: 1-10
...8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and
this is not from you; it is the gift of God; 9 it is not from works, so no one
may boast.
The Jews knew of the prophecy that from King David’s lineage
would come forth a King, the foretold Messiah of Israel. During the reign of
King Ahaz and all other kings of Israel who did evil things the
royalty was cut off. During the Babylonian captivity and in exile, those born
of the line of David, of royal blood went in hiding for fear of being killed.
Even though the divinic dynasty was cut off, from the tree of Jesse, the father
of King David, came forth the shoot that brought forth the King. We remember
that it was prophesied in Isaiah 11:1 And there shall come forth a rod out of
the stem of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots.” The genealogy of
Jesus in Matthew 1 tells of this family tree. We would find at the end of this
lineage is Joseph who is the husband of Mary the mother of Jesus. Joseph is not
king but a carpenter and being Jew knew of the prophecy as foretold by the
prophet including this one from Isaiah 7:14 … the Lord Himself shall give you a
sign, “Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call His name
Emmanuel.” as spoken to him by the angel who appeared to him. He finally
understood the fulfillment of God’s promise to Israel . Isaiah is important to
better understand Jesus. Joseph knew of the need for secrecy and not to make
public these things because the reigning king at that time is Herod. He is not
Jew but an Edomite who was just appointed by the Romans to be king. He is king
not for the Jews but for the Romans to collect taxes for them. This is mainly
the reason why Herod wants all male babies born at the time of Jesus, dead.
Joseph dreamed a lot of dreams and it was through them that Joseph was able to
successfully carry out his mission as the protector of the baby Jesus. Another
point of reference here is the fact that in the Old Testament (OT) there was a
foreshadowing of the Magi or Wise Men who came to worship Jesus in the manger.
It was at the time of the reign of Balak an evil king in the OT when Balaam
also a wise man from the East prophesied in Numbers 24:15,18 that there shall
come a Star out of Jacob and a Scepter shall rise out of Israel who will dispossess Edom . He was asked to exact a curse
upon Israel
but from his mouth came forth a blessing. A star and a scepter signifies
kingship. In parallel, it was also the 3 wise men who were looking for a star
that would direct them to the newborn King of Israel who would inform Herod of
his whereabouts but warned in a dream not to go back to him in a dream. Jesus
is truly our King. The Kingship of Jesus is accompanied by many more wonderful
things that we still have to know of. In the Jewish tradition the # 3 and 7
stands for perfection and completeness. It is somehow puzzling to know that
there are 3 sets of 14 generations from the time of Abraham to the exile to the
time of Jesus. So why the #14? The significance of the #14 stands for the name
of King David which is equivalent to 14 in Hebrew. The 3 sets of 14 stands for perfect royalty
and king that all leads to Jesus. It could also be equivalent to 6 sets of 7.
The #6 signifies the date when the beast is made or the beginning thus the #666
which signifies the beast of all beasts. The 6 of 7 sets could mean the
beginning of the 7th set. 7 is also the Sabbath. The new 7 is the new creation.
Jesus is the beginning of the 7th set. Why the fuss in all of these? It is a consolation
to know that we have a God who is King. The King of kings and the Lord of
lords. We will eventually come face to face with our Creator and God who made
heaven and earth. The time is now to make a conscious move to be in touch with
this truth. It is such a waste that we don't always realize God's presence
among us. When there is nothing more rewarding than to always be aware of God's
presence and cry out to Him in joy. Whenever we are in a relationship with
someone and give our 100% into it then we can not help but expect it to work.
But there are times too when we have given our all and yet it doesn't seem to
be enough. We sometimes are bound for disappointments. When these things happen
then is really no reason to be sad for we can always go to God for consolation
whose love for us endures forever. We are all called to become partakers and
residents of the eternal Kingdom
of God Elm Street " every time the girl in
this movie falls asleep, her nightmare begins and Freddie Krueger appears to
wreak evil and havoc in her life. She has to stay awake or else something
really bad happens to her and the people around her. Somehow this should make
us realize the importance of being awake, conscious and in touch with reality.
If there's one thing that we have to always be aware of, that is God has our
best interest in mind. It may not be easy to see, understand and have a grip on
this reality always especially at times when we seem down and out as in falling
flat on bed without a care in the world like dumb sleepyheads. We have to rise,
wake up and shine. We ought to always get a hold of this truth in today's psalm
and never let it leave our consciousness. We will eventually come face to face
with our Creator, and the time is now to make a conscious move to be in touch
with this truth. Our devotion to God should have no limits for He is Almighty,
All Powerful and Holy. We should remain faithful to God and never stray away
from the path where He leads us. Let us stay within the flock that God has
formed for us. When we are being cared for by God who is constantly and
consistently good, kind and faithful forever and ever then we are confident
that we are safe and secure in the fold where we belong like a flock tended by
the Good Shepherd. We should always remember that we have a God who cares for
all our needs for we belong to Him. Amen. Hallelujah!
Psalm 100: 1b-2, 3, 4ab, 4c-5
R: The Lord made us, we belong to him.
1 Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands; 2 serve the LORD
with gladness; come before him with joyful song. (R) 3 Know that the LORD is
God; he made us, his we are; his people, the flock he tends. Enter his gates
with thanksgiving, his courts with praise; give thanks to him; bless his name.
5 For he is good, the LORD, whose kindness endures forever, and his
faithfulness, to all generations.
Today’s gospel is definitely not a far cry from the messages
being conveyed in all the other readings for today. In fact it is explicitly
stated what will become of those who fail to store up treasures in heaven.
Everything else will be for nothing if we are not wise enough to realize what’s
truly important and essential in this life. We should not continue wasting and
throwing away precious time and opportunities to invest and be rich in what
matters to God. God is indeed a God who will always assure us and will never
leave us feeling at a loss. There are so many conflicts going on around us and
sometimes we get too carried away by the concerns of this world we sometimes
overlook what's most important and essential. Although we are part of this
world we should not forget that at the end of it all, the only thing that will
matter is our stored up treasure that matters to God. What is our main focus in
life? If we still find ourselves attached more to other things than what God
calls us to do then we are in danger of missing the true wealth. It is easier
when we have to choose between good and bad but more difficult when we are
confronted with choices that are both good. Today's gospel speaks of a fool who
did not make the wisest choices. We must pray for the gift of discernment in
order for us to recognize what is truly important and essential in life. Today’s
gospel is also another assurance from the Lord that He will never forsake nor
leave us and will always uphold our cause. It is only right and fitting that we
continue to give honor and praise to Him by reflecting God in our lives. We
have to be rich in the eyes of God and not in the eyes of men. God's impression
of us is what matters most and everything else will follow. Amen. Hallelujah!
Luke 12:13-21
...“Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may
be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.”... … God said to him,
‘You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and the things you
have prepared, to whom will they belong?’ 21 Thus will it be for the one who
stores up treasure for himself but is not rich in what matters to God.”
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