Romans 10:9-18
...For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses
with the mouth and so is saved. 11 For the scripture says, “No one who believes
in him will be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and
Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all, enriching all who call upon him. 13 For
“everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”...But not everyone
has heeded the good news; for Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what was
heard from us?” 17 Thus faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes
through the word of Christ. 18 But I ask, did they not hear? Certainly they
did; for “Their voice has gone forth to all the earth, and their words to the
ends of the world.”
It always pays to be watchful and alert at all times.
Although we sometimes fail to measure up due to our own shortcomings or could
be the doing of another, God assures us in today's psalm that if we fall into
the trap of the enemy we can always repent with a deep remorse for our sins and
resolve to make the precepts of the Lord the joy of our hearts. In doing so, we
find ourselves naturally restrained from sin and maintain our innocence. It is
so hard to live a life that is pleasing to the Lord if we do not know exactly
how to go about with it. It's just like when we have to comply to certain
requirements in school and follow the standard set by it. We need to have a
pattern or outline from which we can base our work. Just as it is so in other
things, the more we are all in need of God's precepts. The absolute bedrock of
spiritual life is to follow the 10 commandments. We are sometimes misled into
thinking that when we have a type of prayer then we think that we already have
a spiritual life. We’ve got to have the humility to admit that God is smarter
than we are and we need to follow and obey what we are told in the 10
commandments. We should be totally and absolutely convinced that He knows best.
Satan uses half truths and half lies in his devilish tricks. Satan’s claims
seem to come true in one level. Take the example of our 1st parents
after eating of the forbidden fruit their eyes were opened and did become in
one sense like God. The fallen angels made their free choice by radically and
irrevocably rejecting God so in turn they seduce and mislead Adam & Eve. It
was through sin that humanity was afflicted by death. Because of one man’s
disobedience many were made sinners. When tempted in the Garden, Adam failed to
remain faithful to God and His commands. Jesus, the New Adam, is God’s servant
totally obedient to the Divine will. Jesus is the devil’s conqueror and takes
back the plunder. What the devil has stolen from us, Jesus has recovered for
us. Pope Benedict XVI commented about what the Lord experienced in the desert
and said that at the heart of all temptations is the act of pushing God aside
because we conceive Him as secondary. It is an act of constructing our world
with our own lights and building our own foundation and setting God aside as an
allusion. Temptations come in many varied forms but one thing is sure, it does
not invite us to directly do evil because it is too blatant and would outright
turn us off. It is very subtle and yet an act of pushing God’s commands aside
and placing the devil’s temptation as primary. If we want to remain victorious
throughout life, we have to keep Him in the center of our life and hold on to
His words which are Spirit and life. God’s ever present help can be found in
the scriptures. It's just like a soldier going to battle wearing the armor of
God. It never fails and always there to defend and protect from the snares of
the evil one. So always take up your sword which is the word of God. God's
perfect word can refresh the soul. Have you ever wondered really how it feels
to be refreshed? Whenever we take a shower or a warm bath and put on clothes
that are well fitted and comfortable it refreshes our body. It could also be whenever
we go to a place where we can unwind, relax, be away from the tensions,
stresses, noise and turmoil of the fast paced lives that we lead and just
appreciate the beauty of nature that surrounds us and the peace and quiet it
offers to our tired bodies in order to be more in touch with God's voice in us.
It is so refreshing it gives our minds and hearts a better view and perspective
of how to live our lives. The same thing with our souls, we should always keep
it clean, healthy and clothed with maximum security, protection but comfortable
enough we don't even know it's there. Like it has become fused in us, there's
nothing more right than following and obeying the law of God. Today's psalm
reading guides us on how we should go about with our lives by always keeping in
mind God's laws. None of us is perfect but through our imperfections we can
always run to God for help and guidance. He will never refuse nor forsake us
for He can only love and care for us. There are people who have alienated
themselves from God and we can’t just force them to go back. God does not do
that, it’s not how the Lord works, instead we pray and pray for them. If we
wait long enough and adhere to God’s precepts then we will finally obtain joy
in our hearts. As water prevails over the rock throughout the course of time so
does the Holy Spirit that is continuously flooding or washing over the man’s
heart. The Holy Spirit moves in and
continues to work upon us and tenderizes us. The song entitled, "Your
Words Are Spirit and Life" by Bernadette Farrell was impressed to me. It
is a beautiful song that I have always loved to sing and I just realized that
the words of this song are taken from this psalm which made me start singing
it. Well, we just have to fully discover what the words of God can make us do. When
things get out of hand we have no one to blame but ourselves for God is surely
not lacking in everything that He has given us for our own welfare. We've got
everything we need because there's nothing more that God could and should do
for us that He has not done. All we have to do is completely trust and obey the
judgments of the Lord. GOD'S LAW MAKES US LIVE A VIRTUOUS LIFE (CCC 1803
"Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is
pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if
there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." May we
truly recognize the genuine and precious treasures that we should all strive to
achieve and work for which is none other than these things spoken of in today's
psalm. Amen. Hallelujah!
Psalm 19:8, 9, 10, 11
R: The judgments of the Lord are true, and all of them are
just.
7 [8] The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul;
the decree of the LORD is trustworthy, giving wisdom to the simple. (R) 8 [9]
The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the command of the
LORD is clear, enlightening the eye. (R) 9 [10] The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever; the ordinances of the LORD are true, all of them just. (R) 10
[11] They are more precious than gold, than a heap of purest gold; sweeter also
than syrup or honey from the comb.
It happens that every time I become part of a certain parish
I make it a point to know about its patron saint because of certain events that
led me to it. Call it supernatural or extraordinary or whatever we prefer to
call it but it has always been this way. It is like something would come up
like knowing a particular thing about these saints that would make me realize
how they impact my personal life. It is always good to read about the life of
the saints. God is pleased with the way they lived their lives here on earth.
We can always learn something from them especially in making better our
relationship with God. This is what the example of their holy and exemplary
life give, not just to us but also to the rest of our family to follow. Today
is the feast day of St. Andrew, pray for us. Happy Feast Day! St. Andrew was also known as the Apostle of
the Greek World, had a Greek name it is not Hebrew, as might have been
expected, but Greek, indicative of a certain cultural openness in his family.
He also became the preacher and interpreter of Jesus for the Greek, who were
also known for their pagan beliefs. Andrew, only Andrew, seemed to have kept
his contemplative spirit. When there was the occasion of feeding the five
thousand, it was Andrew who naively presented to Jesus the little boy who had
some loaves and fish. He trusted Jesus' ability to do something from such a
small and impossible beginning. When my husband Edwin and I decided to buy a
lot where to build our house, way back in 1990, we chanced upon this lot in
Greenwoods Pasig and bought it. It took us 4 years before we were finally able
to build a house and moved in 1994. Now I know why God chose this place for us
to raise our two boys Jude and Allan who are now 23 and 20 years old
respectively. Today also there is a fiesta in Greenwoods since St. Andrew is the patron saint in our parish. I am very
thankful for the San Andres Apostol Parish in Greenwoods for adopting our
family most especially my two sons, being a part of it has been a blessing. My
sons have become active members of the Youth For Christ (YFC). They are now
actively serving the Lord through this community. They have met very nice
friends in Greenwoods, too. It helped to know that even if we're miles apart, I
am confident in the knowledge that St. Andrew the patron saint of Greenwoods
who have always sheltered the families there will continue to intercede for us.
My sons were able to build their circle of God fearing friends founded on the
activities under the roof of this church. I hope and pray that these bonds will
continue to strengthen with the help of St. Andrew as he has done for so many
years in the past up to the present. Over all, in all and for all, God makes
all things work for the good. We are all called to discipleship by God. It just
depends on how attentive we are to His call and do we hear it at all. We have
our own personal plans and expectations and God's call to us may seem unfit and
does not conform to what we have in mind. This is where the problem lies when
we assume things in a different way or plainly unwilling to respond to the call
in the manner that God would have it. We sometimes think that we know better by
having things our way especially when times are tough. Today's gospel tells us
that when the first apostles were called they left their nets and boats and
followed Him. It may help us to think of our own nets and boats in life and ask
ourselves if we would also be willing to leave them behind. It is definitely
not an easy task but it will all be worth it in the end. Amen. Hallelujah!
Matthew 4:18-22
18 As Jesus was walking by the Sea of
Galilee , he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his
brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. 19 He said to
them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” 20 At once they left
their nets and followed him.
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