PAY ATTENTION

Life is too short to waste on things that will only bring grief and trouble. We should be careful on how we live our life and be responsible for our every action. If we can not undo some things, we can certainly make things work for the better. We have been equipped by the Lord and let us no longer become ignorant of this. We are able to tap into the ever flowing stream of God's Holy Spirit which bears endless fruits of love, peace, joy, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self control. Amen. Hallelujah!

Ecclesiastes 11:9-12:8

...Ward off grief from your heart and put away trouble from your presence,...

We are destined for much greater things than we can see right now. Thus we should set our goals higher than what people normally aim for in this life. Let us not reach the end of our lives regretting what we should have done or not and do what we have to do right now. We marvel at the capability of the human mind to function the way it was made to be but how much more can we not be amazed at how the mind of the Lord works from whom all things come. As humans we can not even go past a hundred years old and too lucky to be able to make it to that age nowadays. Everything passes away but what we can depend on to last for a lifetime through eternity is to fortify our soul with wisdom of heart. Time will come when there is no more room for sadness once we've decided for happiness for we have a God who prospers those who offers all his/her work for the Lord. God is Almighty and Powerful. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. He has the final say on all things. Nothing is beyond His power and might. Isn't it a very nice thing to know that this very same God has also been our refuge and strength in every age. Learning of this story about an atheist who fasts for the destruction of the world should make us realize that we should not take things sitting down. The enemy does not rest until it snatches away our inheritance. We should keep our banners raised on high and never lose heart or be discouraged as the battle rages on we can be assured that we have a God whom we can always rely on and take refuge. We’ve got to be firm in our beliefs but things will always be easier said than done. Spiritual integrity is hard work but it surely is worth all of it. Today's psalm tells us how short our life here on earth can be compared to a life of eternity with God our Creator, refuge and strength. It is always never easy to picture matters of the faith and life after death. It is through the people who continue to be a source of inspiration and blessing for the community of God that we can gather the strength and courage to keep on fighting a good fight of the faith. Today’s psalm reading somehow captures the essence if not its entirety. Nothing else in this world matters more than this truth. God gave us life and to Him we all must return. The problem lies in the fact that we don’t really know when will that day be. We’ve got to be prepared at all times. What’s at stake here is eternity and is nothing compared to 100 years life span of happiness and prosperity, the most for healthy and active individuals. We can’t allow ourselves to live life carelessly and just cram at the last minute. I’ve seen quite a number of elderly people who have fallen into senility. Although nothing is too late, I still think that we are able to prepare as best as we could if we are still in our prime and high functioning mind and body than with such a condition. Let’s not wait long enough and keep procrastinating. May we all realize the importance of  numbering our days aright. Our first parents were the original sinners and we are just the copy cats. In a way we are better off than Adam & Eve in the sense that we have their example of disobedience set before us. We can choose to follow their lead or footsteps by giving in to deception which we know is a bad idea or we can learn the moral lesson of this story and gain wisdom of heart. The wisdom of heart can make us truly see and appreciate the things the Lord has done for us that bring prosperity, joy and gladness. Amen. Hallelujah!

Psalm 90:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14, 17

R: In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.

You turn man back to dust, saying, “Return, O children of men.” 4 For a thousand years in your sight are as yesterday, now that it is past, or as a watch of the night. (R) 5 You make an end of them in their sleep; the next morning they are like the changing grass, 6 which at dawn springs up anew, but by evening wilts and fades. (R) 12 Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain wisdom of heart. Return, O LORD! How long?

Have pity on your servants! R. Fill us at daybreak with your kindness, that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days. And may the gracious care of the LORD our God be ours; prosper the work of our hands for us! Prosper the work of our hands! R.

Let us not take for granted the things that Jesus is communicating with us everyday of our lives. What He wants for us is to gain knowledge on matters that we do not know and enrich what we already know. Nothing in what Jesus is telling us is difficult to understand nor will He purposely confuse or lead us astray. All of these we can surely have access if we will just pay attention to Him as what today's gospel is telling us. Have you ever experienced in your life when you hesitate to ask and just prefer to keep silent about something that you don't really know about? Sometimes we don't fully understand why things happen the way they do but we can be assured that in spite of our limitations and inadequacies we have a God who oversees everything. As the song goes," He who began a good work will be faithful to complete it in you." All we have to do is always pay attention to what God is telling us to do and obey. Paying attention at all times is a very good advice that anybody can benefit from especially if the person whom we are talking to has a lot of good things to say that we can learn from. In today's gospel, Jesus said to his disciples to pay attention and we all know that no one else can be more worthy of our attention than Jesus. I've had several mishaps in my lifetime because I wasn't paying much attention and realized that we would surely all be better off in our life if we will always give our full attention to Jesus. Amen. Hallelujah! 

Luke 9:43b-45

43 While they were all amazed at his every deed, Jesus said to his disciples, 44 “Pay attention to what I am telling you. The Son of Man is to be handed over to men.” 45 But they did not understand this saying; its meaning was hidden from them so that they should not understand it, and they were afraid to ask him about this saying.