What's your standard? I used to do R & D (Research and
Development) work at the ITDI (Industrial Technology Development Institute)
when I was in the Philippines
and if there's one important thing that you've got to have that is to establish
a set of standard to be used for the analysis. The same way with our life we've
got to continue R & D work too, if we want to see improvement and success.
As we are faced constantly with the struggles of daily life we have to discover
new things, ways and strategies to come up with the best. As we go along our
way we've got to carry on using the optimum parameters based on the only proven
and reliable standard that is God’s. There should be no biases or indifferences
among the community of God. Today's 1st
reading presents to us a problem among the disciples at the time of Jesus and
even up to the present time. We should avoid taking sides and engaging in
actions that instead of uniting, create factions. We should closely guard
ourselves against these things. We have to be very careful in conducting our
affairs. We might not be aware of it but there are times when we are inclined
to do certain things without realizing that it does not do any good to us and
others. No matter how noble and religious this activity we are engaged in or
people we identify and work with, it could not mask, hide or camouflage any
flaw if it's just for human or personal glory. What's worse is that we are no
longer reflecting our Lord Jesus Christ in doing so and in the process is
actually doing more harm than we ever come to know. Why is this so? It is just
like the fact that there are only 2 sides on a coin, it's just head or tail and
no in between, we too, have to be conscious that whatever our actions are, they
only mean one thing or the other, to picture God in it or not. Amen.
Hallelujah!
1 Corinthians 3:18-23
Let no one deceive himself. If any one among you considers
himself wise in this age, let him become a fool, so as to become wise. For the
wisdom of this world is foolishness in the eyes of God, for it is written: “He
catches the wise in their own ruses,” 20 and again: “The Lord knows the
thoughts of the wise, that they are vain.” 21 So let no one boast about human
beings, for everything belongs to you, 22 Paul or Apollos or Kephas, or the
world or life or death, or the present or the future: all belong to you, 23 and
you to Christ, and Christ to God.
We can't claim to be this kind of person, a Christian but
conduct ourselves in a very unlikely way. Let us no longer be deceived by the
false and misleading truths and principles that this world presents to us every
single day. We have to be grounded at all times on this truth that today's
psalm is telling us. There was a time when Tita Neds complained that something
is wrong with the television. She said that somebody fixed it already but it
didn't stay fixed for long. It wasn't the manufacturer who repaired it that was
why. If it was brought to its manufacturer they would definitely know what to
do with it. We've got to be conscious of this reality and apply it to
ourselves. When something goes wrong we should know where to go, to whom we
really belong, the Lord. This is the covenant: we belong to the Lord and He
belongs to us for we are His people and He is our God. If we look at what's
happening in the world today most especially the economic crisis wherein even
the leading nations are being challenged by the present situation then we are
really bound to anticipate the worst. Not even those people who used to be very
confident of their present jobs in their respective stable companies can be too
sure of what's going to happen next. There have been so much speculations of
what will be the outcome of this worldwide problem of the economy and most of
them are not good. With all these rubble, there is just really one thing we
need to focus on and that is God. It is not easy to live life in this world but
we can rejoice and be glad, we have an army, a battalion, a full house of
saints with all the angels constantly and endlessly praying and singing in
heaven, the so called triumphant Church/army of God, who intercede in our
behalf and is joyously inviting us to be one of them. We are being reminded by
the readings today to always keep ourselves blameless before the Lord no matter
how tough things are. God wants to be with us, there is no doubt about that.
But just like water and oil which can not be put together and mixed so is God
and man if we are in sin or harbor anything that can not be attributed to the
holiness of God. We can not force two different things to go together. Water is
a polar molecule and oil is non polar. They do not mix because they are two
different substances as in the adage, "Like dissolves like." God can
not change. He is already who He is, Holy in all His ways. We can change. We
can be like God in His holiness and goodness if we want to be with Him forever.
Let us not lose sight of what a mighty God we serve who made the heavens and
the earth. We pray to God to open our eyes that we may see the wonders of His
love. We should think profoundly of our daily walk with the Lord which consists
of not only a leisure stroll in the plains and valleys of life but a steep
climb up to the top of the mountain. We must avail of the sacrament of
reconciliation. It gives us renewed strength and hope. Our life consists of
steep and dangerous climbs but we must not forget that God is always at our
side. If we are to carefully assess our life we would find that it feels good
whenever we are able to overcome most of our pitfalls though there are some
that still needs improvement. We must praise and thank God that every time we
experience a fall back and backslide we can immediately go back to Him through
the sacrament of confession which restores us to our original path and right
track. It is God's desire that we will someday come face to face with Him.
There is a need for us to prepare for that day. We are sometimes guilty of not
focusing on God's countenance alone, there are times when we get distracted by
other things and today's psalm reading serves as the reminder. I heard a story
about God's radiating and blinding light that when we stand before Him nothing
is hidden from Him, He will never turn away from us but if we ourselves are
tainted with the guilt of our sins then we can not withstand His presence and
will definitely hide and ran away from Him, far from His ever blinding Light
that penetrates us. Let us all hope that when that day comes we can stand in
His Holy Presence and claim with confidence our rightful place in His Kingdom.
For our information, all of us are eligible to be in heaven with God. There is
no doubt about this since we have been made and washed clean by the Blood of the
Lamb who takes away the sins of the world. A virgin is with child. The Old
Testament scriptures have foretold of this and point to the coming of Christ.
The prophets preannounced and prefigured His coming and pointed to the
fulfillment in Jesus in the New Testament. He has loved us first and continues
to do so. He encounters us ever anew in the sacraments especially in the
Eucharist. The Church helps us to respond to God’s initiative through word and
teaching and the gathering of believers who respond faithfully. We have to be
firm, resilient and faithful people of God. We’ve got to really focus on what
is truly important and essential. We live in a world where there are so many
distractions that we tend to lose sight of what should be our greatest and most
important concern. After all has been said and done we will find in the end
that what truly matters is not what will last only in this lifetime but for all
eternity, a reward from God our Savior. When somebody invites us for a party we
just don't go there without preparing ourselves for it. Much more gatecrash and
just go to a party without an invitation. We are blessed that God has invited
us. The best we could do being privileged, honored and counted to come to His
banquet in heaven is to make preparations and always be ready to take part in
it, really belong and not end up an outcast. We should not lose sight of this
standing invitation that God gives us in our daily life. There is indeed a need
to always be prepared so that when the final moment comes we can reside in the
heavenly abode of God. In every game there is a rule to follow and only those
who play it fair and square can finish to the end and win their prize. Today’s
psalm gives us a guideline to follow in order to make it through. We should always
long to see the face of God at all times in every person, event and
circumstance in our lives. Let us always hold on to this image so that someday
when we finally come face to face with God we will receive a blessing and
reward for He will surely bring about what He said He would do. In the course
of the time and in the history of mankind we hear of people like Abraham chosen
by God. The chosen people were given laws and ordinances to follow. The
remnants of the chosen people or those who were faithful to God in keeping
these commandments like Simeon and Anna, Joachim and Anne are those who belong
to the Hebrew generation, kept the Jewish tradition and prepared the way for
the coming of the Messiah. This initiation of God in loving us first should bring
us to act and make love blossom as a response on our part. We've got to be
aware that the no one but the Lord is the King of glory. Amen. Hallelujah!
Psalm 24:1bc-2, 3-4ab, 5-6
R: To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
...For he founded it upon the seas and established it upon
the rivers. (R) 3 Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD? Or who may stand in
his holy place? 4 He whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean, who desires
not what is vain. (R) 5 He shall receive a blessing from the LORD, a reward
from God his savior...
Luke 5:1-11
...“Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a
catch.” Simon said in reply, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have
caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.” 6 When they had
done this, they caught a great number of fish and their nets were tearing.
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