No amount of planning and hard work combined can ever
prosper if it will not blessed by the Lord. For everything will all be wasted
if you plan ahead of God and work for something that is not according to God's
design.
It is foolish for us to think that we can escape or get away
with something without God noticing it. Today's 1st reading is a foolishness
that we are all sometimes guilty of. We all make plans for ourselves but
sometimes we do not take into consideration whether it is in accordance to
God's will or not. We make all kinds of excuses and justifications for
ourselves thinking that in the end we would all come out clean and justified.
No matter what we do if we do not put God first then that plan would never
prosper and even if it does it would only be to a certain extent that we would
eventually find ourselves still unfulfilled and unsatisfied. Let us not be so
naïve and really know who God is and what God is capable of doing in our lives.
We can never stand against God nor can we do good to ourselves more than He can.
It’s about time we learn this lesson from the
Genesis 11:1-9
...Let us then go down and there confuse their language, so
that one will not understand what another says.” 8 Thus the LORD scattered them
from there all over the earth, and they stopped building the city. 9 That is
why it was called Babel
Nothing is hidden from God and everything is known to Him.
It pays to always consult our plans to God in prayers and everything we intend
to do we should lay before Him and seek His approval. He will never deprive us
nor withhold from us the answers that we seek. If we sometimes forget these and
tend to stray away from the right path then we should always be aware that
everything that we say, think and do must always have reference to God our
Creator. It may have happened to most of us when we get disappointed at how we
still miss something so quickly despite our close watch. We sometimes end up
confused and discouraged when things don’t happen the way we expect it despite
our accurate and strict monitoring. We even ask ourselves how it could have
happened. We may have heard and seen some terrible and frightening things in
our life but we should always hold on to the truth that no matter how horrible
the things that are happening around us they don't change the fact that our
Lord is God and always in charge and in control. It doesn't matter that much
how we think and feel but what matters most is how to feel and think just like
God. For we can always rely and depend on it, 100%, fail proof and success
guaranteed. We should place our trust not in men or in things but in God alone.
The Lord did not promise us to be totally problem free but He gave His
assurance that He will always be our Savior and Redeemer. God's power is beyond
our full comprehension. He is Holy, Mighty, Immortal and Infinitely Great. Did
it ever occur to you how all these things that surround us, from the skies, to
the mountains, plains, the seas, the wind, all the heavenly bodies above, the
things down below, all the creatures of the earth especially us, human beings
came to be. Not a single theory about creation could suffice and would ever
satisfy the wonders and marvelous things that God has done. Just thinking about
all these things should make us always put our hope in Him, feel confident and
assured that we are safe under His care, to help us from all our problems and
shield us from all harm. It is a consolation to know that we are constantly
assured by God especially in today's psalm to never doubt His power and
goodness. His loving eyes is always upon us not leaving us for a single moment
nor removing his stare even with a wink of an eye. It feels good to know that
someone's eyes are upon us and looking after us. When we come to a point of
despair and feel like things are not getting better, we ought to remember
always that we are God's people and we are His own. We have to realize this one
most important truth that we should all subscribe to, which is to constantly
align ourselves and conform to the will and plan of God in our lives. Let us
ask the Lord to lead us to the right path and decisions that we may work toward
the building of God’s kingdom here on earth. We
should not give room to any doubt, fear, anxiety, impatience, irritability,
hatred, sadness, iniquity, unfaithfulness, disloyalty, pride and loss of self
control. Let us not choose to give in to these. They are all characteristics
that should not be found in a people the Lord has chosen to be His own. Our
present situation may not be a perfect picture yet but we should all rejoice
and be glad knowing that God was the one who chose us first and He will carry us
through. All we have to do is just trust that the Lord will carry out with
perfection all His plans for us no matter what situations or circumstances may
arise in our midst. When God created this world and everything in it including
us, He did not ask permission from anybody. It means that He has chosen us to
be His own and not the other way around. This is the reason why the fallen
angels/demons are so jealous of men. We are indeed special in the eyes of God
for it is written in Gen 1:26, "Then God said: "Let us make man in
our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion..." We are not just
chosen by God to be His own even before everything came to be but we are on top
of His creation. Let us never lose sight of this
wonderful plan that God has for all of us. We may not be seeing it right now,
having doubts about it, not paying attention to it or unable to commit to it.
Whatever it may be, these are all hindrances that prevent us from gaining
access to the goodness of the Lord. Never allow ourselves to miss out on this
privilege that is accorded to all of us as the children of God. God chose us
first and it is only right and fitting that we choose Him too. If we always
focus on the Lord and put His words in our presence at all times then we can be
assured that we have a lamp unto our feet that is lighting our path. We have to
entrust all our cares and worries to the Lord for He can do better things for
our lives than all our works combined. No matter how hard we try to succeed in
what we do if it's not in accordance to God's plan then nothing will ever come
out of it. We may succeed in one aspect but we will never be totally at peace
for in the end it will always be the will and plan of God that will prevail. We
just have to acknowledge that we are sparing ourselves of all the trouble and
heartaches if we will just be obedient and completely trust in the Lord's plan.
Let us truly be wise in the real sense of the word rather than of the
world and not forfeit all our benefits from the Lord. We
all have our personal plans and designs and we may not be able to fully
understand what is going on at the present time. It is not easy for the wisdom
in the eyes of God is foolishness to the world but what's most important is
that we should always consult everything to God first, just believe and
surrender everything to Him for He knows best. We have to realize this one most
important truth that we should all subscribe to, which is to constantly align
ourselves and conform to the will and plan of God in our lives. The power of
God knows no limits and we can always rely on Him for anything that we are in
need. Let us rely on God's power and completely trust Him to bring to
fulfillment everything that He has promised. Just like the Blessed
Mother Mary, who is Queen of heaven and earth, we too are destined for victory
and royalty. If only we live out the example of her obedient life and carry
Jesus in our hearts. Let us not lose hope and have faith in the Master Plan and
Grand Design that God has for all of us. Amen. Hallelujah!
Psalms 33:10-11, 12-13, 14-15
R: Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
10 The LORD brings to nought the plans of nations; he foils
the designs of peoples. 11 But the plan of the LORD stands forever; the design
of his heart, through all generations.
Think hard, not just once or twice but several times. What are our goals and plans in life, it is surely wise to always look before we leap into something. We might be missing out on the most important thing and working hard for nothing. Let us keep our focus on the most essential things in life that will lead us to the only thing that matters most and that is to offer our lives for God's greater glory and be a living testimony that God is with us and at work in us. Nothing is ever wasted if we always follow, obey and consciously work for the fulfillment of God's plan in our lives. Today’s gospel contains words that the world may consider rubbish but is in truth real treasure beyond compare. If we have truly lived by these principles and found the joy of abiding in it then we are truly blessed. Amen. Hallelujah!
Mark 8:34-9:1
34 Jesus summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. 35 For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel will save it. 36 What profit is there for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? 37 What could one give in exchange for his life? 38 Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this faithless and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”
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