There are times in our life when we just have to leave
someone behind to be on their own for the greater good. Paul in his letter to
Titus did just that. We just got to do what has to be done whether it would
seem to look like abandonment but in the end it would turn things out for the
better. We have people in our lives that we truly care and love and only wish
for the best things for them. Although it hurts to leave them and be apart,
some things are just better off this way. It is definitely a case to case basis
but it can not be denied that it really works if done the right way. Titus whom
Paul considered his beloved son in the faith was given a task that he has to
accomplish by himself without the presence of Paul. It is good to have people
around us to give us support but we can not always depend on other people to do
things for us, there has got to be a time when we should stand up on our own
two feet, develop the backbone, be self reliant and take responsibility. We
should be able to make decisions, stand by them, not point any fingers when
things seem to go wrong and be able to really claim them as our own. If we do,
we will see that things are brought to light and better understanding as they
eventually fall into perfect place. As in Romans 8:28, "We know that all
things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to His
purpose." It is so difficult to testify to the gospel for our best
testimony of Christ is our own lives. We have to prove ourselves worthy of the
call. It is by doing this that we will develop character that will enhance our
qualities to become a better person and Christian that our Lord Jesus Christ
would surely be proud of. Amen. Hallelujah!
Titus 1:1-9
...to Titus, my true child in our common faith: grace and
peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our savior. 5 For this reason I left
you in Crete so that you might set right what remains to be done ...as God’s
steward must be blameless, not arrogant, not irritable, not a drunkard, not
aggressive, not greedy for sordid gain, 8 but hospitable, a lover of goodness,
temperate, just, holy, and self-controlled, 9 holding fast to the true message
as taught so that he will be able both to exhort with sound doctrine and to
refute opponents.
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. 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. 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. 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. A virgin is with child. 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. 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 consistent to the kind of people who longs to see God's face. 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. Amen.
Hallelujah!
Psalm
24:1-2, 3-4ab, 5-6
R: Lord,
this is the people that longs to see your face.
...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...Such are
the people that love the LORD, that seek the face of the God of Jacob."
Luke 17:1-6
1 Jesus said to his disciples, “Things that cause sin will
inevitably occur, but woe to the person through whom they occur. 2 It would be
better for him if a millstone were put around his neck and he be thrown into
the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin. 3 Be on your
guard!
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