HARD TO GET

It doesn't mean that if we are friends of Christ we are totally free from life's difficulties and trials. There are still times when we are tensed and our hearts are troubled. We still worry, become anxious and afraid because we live in this reality. We should accept the fact, that just like Paul and Barnabas in today's 1st reading, who worked hard to spread the Good News they were still susceptible to the violence of this world. We can strive to avoid suffering but there is nothing we can do to eliminate it altogether. We can not prevent events that cause this. We still have trouble in our hearts. No one is capable of doing this only God who became man and entered this world. But let us not forget that even Jesus, the Son of God, who is true God and true Man was greatly distressed and troubled at the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:42-44) He prayed to God, "Father if Thou be willing remove this cup from me nevertheless not My will but Thine be done." When we pray to God this does not eliminate either what we are distressed of. We pray but still go through our mini passion. In the light of these things we ought to remember always that evil and death has no power over us because Jesus is resurrected. Whoever has God lacks nothing, He alone suffices. God will always prioritize us, His people but if we are stubborn and doesn't want to listen then we forfeit our price. Have you ever experienced your name or raffle ticket being called out in a draw and you forfeited your price because you weren't there, you weren't patient in waiting or you just decided that it would be better for you to just leave. Let us keep in mind that the price of eternal life is worth all our time and treasure. No one is excluded from the gift of eternal life. Everybody is given the same privilege as were given to the chosen people of God. God is fair and just in all His ways. All we need to do is respond in the way that the Gentiles did in today's 1st reading instead of reject it like what most of the Jews did. If we've really come to believe then we should also work to spread the Word of God. No one should ever claim that they haven't heard or known about God since it is our prime duty to spread and make it known throughout the whole world. Amen. Hallelujah!

Acts 13:44-52
44 On the following sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. 45 When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and with violent abuse contradicted what Paul said. 46 Both Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first, but since you reject it and condemn ourselves as unworthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles...The Gentiles were delighted when they heard this and glorified the word of the Lord. All who were destined for eternal life came to believe, 49 and the word of the Lord continued to spread through the whole region...

We have to trust, hope and rely on God rather than our own power. Let's face it we sometimes rely too much on ourselves and too little on God. We are troubled about a lot of things when sometimes there's really no cause for it. There are levels of anxiety. Exaggerated anxiety and discouragement are one of the greatest obstacles to holiness. There is a level of anxiety that we just have to trust in God's Grace and Goodness. We should not disturb our inner peace not even momentarily. Life on earth is a great struggle indeed for God's Kingdom. A lot of things can bother and bring us down but we do not have to stay that way. We have to exercise our minds and wills to put our confidence in God. He is the one whom we can totally trust and depend on to save us. God's faithfulness and steadfast love know no boundaries. These compelled me to write daily personal reflections of the readings which I consider as my love letters to the Lord. I can still remember the time when I used to write letters to my close friends. There was one friend of mine whom I exchange letters as often as every week considering that there was no e mail yet and had to send it through the post office. I am sure that we both anticipated the coming of the mailman every single day and had made the bond of our friendship stronger. We should hope to move toward that goal in our relationship with God. Amen. Hallelujah!

Psalm 98:1, 2-3ab, 3cd-4
R: All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.
1 Sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done wondrous deeds; his right hand has won victory for him, his holy arm. (R) 2 The LORD has made his salvation known in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice. 3 He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness toward the house of Israel. (R) All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation by our God. 4 Sing joyfully to the LORD, all you lands; break into song; sing praise.

If we are just to make sense of everything that goes on around us each and every single day then we can never be far away nor get lost in this reality that Jesus is telling us in today's gospel. It is undeniable what God has done for all of us from the dawn of man to this present age of modern civilization. Let us not continue to be negligent, mindless, thoughtless, careless and apathetic of the truth in the gospel that the Church is teaching us. Until when will we remain deaf and blind to all of these things that have been for a long time being conveyed to us from time immemorial, from the time of Abraham, Jacob, Moses, the Judges, the Kings, the Prophets, in exile until the return and ultimately to the time of Jesus more than 2,000 years ago when God did the unimaginable and stooped down to become man. The bible itself speaks for the long span of time that God has been trying to lure us into an intimate relationship with Him. Are we really that dumb not to see all of these and remain unaffected by this astounding truth? Can we afford to play hard to get with God, who is as irresistible as He is. The time to enter into that relationship is now, not later nor tomorrow. Let us not waste any more of the precious time we still have in our hands. Amen. Hallelujah!

John 14:7-14
...Philip said to him, “Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.” 9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not know me, Philip?... The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works... Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else, believe because of the works themselves. 12 Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes in me will do the works that I do, and will do greater ones than these, because I am going to the Father. 13 And whatever you ask in my name, I will do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask anything of me in my name, I will do it.”