I consider the 1st
reading for today as the climax of the story of Joseph. He revealed himself to
his brothers and did not harbor any resentment and ill feelings despite of all
the things they did to him. In fact he was able to see the plan of God at work
in him through the torturous life he had lived when he was sold as a slave.
Joseph knew all along that God is with him in everything he went through and
experienced and was able to see the purpose of why God allowed those things to
happen in his life. Whenever we feel like in 2 Cor 4:8; ...afflicted in every
way but not constrained, perplexed but not driven to despair; persecuted but
not abandoned; struck down but not destroyed... Know that God is with us all
the way and always strive to see the meaning and purpose of all the things that
God allowed to happen in our lives. The grace of God will not bring us to where
the power of God can not reach us. No matter what it is God can always make the
best out of it. Amen. Hallelujah!
Genesis 44:18-21.
23b-29; 45:1-5
...“I am Joseph,” he said to his brothers. “Is my father
still in good health?” But his brothers could give him no answer, so
dumbfounded were they at him. 4 “Come closer to me,” he told his brothers. When
they had done so, he said: “I am your brother Joseph, whom you once sold into Egypt .
5 But now do not be distressed, and do not reproach yourselves for having sold
me here. It was really for the sake of saving lives that God sent me here ahead
of you.”
There is a lot to
learn from the life of Joseph especially the part when he kept on with his
faith in God when he became a slave and was almost driven to despair when he
was tormented by a lot of trials during that time. All we need to keep in mind
is that our time will come and all we have to do is just continue to trust God
in His goodness and mercy and never let go of our faith. Just imagine what
Joseph had to go through. We will never know of the physical torture and demand
of being a slave nowadays. Thanks to God that slaves are already a thing of the
past and no longer existent in today's world. But more than anything else is
the mental torture of the fact that he was well loved by his father and would
have not been in this kind of situation if his brothers had not done such a
horrible and unfair thing to him. If it were us and not Joseph who had fallen
into this kind of fate we could have responded and reacted to this situation
differently. Are these words familiar to us? I do not deserve to be treated
this way. I did not do anything bad for God to punish me like this, as if God
is a tyrant that is ready to strike us with every wrong move. Why me and not
the others who are a lot more sinful than I am. And all these kind of things
that we say without much thought. If we are to look at the life of Joseph very
closely we would discover that he never let go of his faith in God despite the
seemingly desperate and hopeless situation he went through. He remained firm in
his faith and continued to trust in the word of the Lord. Joseph was tested and
found to be true. In our own lives, we too are called to prove ourselves worthy
before the Lord in order for all of the blessings to flow freely without any
block or hindrance. We don't expect a mango fruit if we planted a banana tree.
It is pretty much the same with our lives. If we strive to live up to the
expectations of a child of the Lord by giving Him honor and praise then we will
surely be not disappointed with the outcome. For God inhabits the praises of
His people. Although we have a tendency to forget or become out of focus since
we are surrounded in this world we are in by elements most especially the
physical ones that make us more inclined to pursue worldly things. We become
sidetracked or worse completely off track of the path where God is leading us.
Let us live every single day of our life conscious of the wonderful truth that
we are God's people and He has made a covenant with us. Almost everybody knows
this famous Christian song from kindergarten, “Father Abraham has many
children, some of them are small, some of them are tall, all of them are
beautiful...” We remain beautiful as long as we keep God's covenant and remain
obedient and faithful to God. He is the reason for everything and the source of
all good things. Sometimes morbid thoughts enter into our mind and immediately we'd
think that it is always the devil who does it but whether it is true or not
this thought could be a wake up call and reminder that in worst case scenarios
or life and death situations there is always a God ready to help us at any
time. All we have to do is call on Him. It is indeed good advice to always look
intently on God and find all the joys waiting for us. There is really no doubt
that we need to further explore, know and understand about our faith. In doing
so we have to constantly look to the Lord, seek Him and recall His goodness. Jesus'
name is undeniably powerful and beyond measure. Its worth is more than all the
riches we can gain in this world. There is really nothing we can find even if
we search far and wide, high and low more than what the Lord can offer.
We could go on and on with so many options we are confronted
with daily in our lives. There is an endless list of "To Do Things"
but what comes first and last is always dependent on our priorities. In
deciding on our priorities we have to always involve God in all the things
happening around us. We would be so glad
to discover that as we place Him in the center of our heart, body and soul He never
fails in guiding and directing us. If we live by the word of God which is
perfect and remains forever then nothing could go wrong. Our hearts will abound
with joy and gladness. There is indeed great power in the name of Jesus. He is
worthy of all praise and thanksgiving. Every single day we are confronted with
so many challenges in life and we have to be always hopeful that the
fulfillment of everything that we have been praying for has come. We should
believe that whatever delays or setbacks we are encountering serve as lessons
to be learned that benefit our spiritual journey with Jesus. There is a need to
go through the different seasons throughout the year for there is indeed a time
and a season for everything. Thus, we all go through different situations and
circumstances in life. Some of them do not make any sense if we fail to
acknowledge the power of God moving in it. There are numerous things that we
can think, focus and decide on but there’s only one thing I am sure of. We’ve
got to acknowledge that despite of it all God’s power remains to be above all
things no matter what it may seem to be. We should always keep in mind all the
wonderful things He has done for us. The Lord will never forsake nor abandon
us. In the midst of all the turmoil we inevitably face in our daily lives may
we remain hopeful in the Lord who is Almighty, provides for all means and
prevails now and forever. Whenever we experience difficulties in life we tend
to question God right away and somehow blame Him for what came upon us. Sometimes
we come to a point in our lives when we tend to question the will of God in our
lives. I have plans and you have plans but sometimes things do not fall into
place and ask why things happened the way it did and not the way we planned and
expected. We just need to always remember the marvels the Lord has done and
always hold on to it. If we live by the word of God which is perfect and
remains forever then nothing could go wrong. Our hearts will abound with joy
and gladness as we further explore, know and understand about our faith. In
doing so we have to constantly look to the Lord, seek Him, recall His goodness,
keep our spirits up and make our hearts rejoice like what today's psalm is
telling us about. There is really nothing we can find even if we search far and
wide, high and low more than what the Lord can offer. We may have experienced a
situation in our life when we encountered a lot of trials and difficulties.
Just when we're about to give up and lose hope, suddenly we came across a
particular incident or inspiration that perfectly fits or matches our specific
problem which gave us this hope and feeling that God knows exactly what we're
going through and promises to see us through it. The Lord is telling us is in
today's psalm and assures us that He remembers what He has promised and will
surely bring about what He said to us that He would do. If God remembers, so
must we. Amen. Hallelujah!
R: Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
Then he called down a famine on the land, destroyed the
grain that sustained them.
He had sent a man ahead of them, Joseph, sold as a slave. (R) 18 They had weighed him down with fetters,
and he was bound with chains, 19 till his prediction came to pass and the word
of the LORD proved him true. The king sent and released him; the ruler of
peoples set him free. He made him lord over his palace, ruler over all his
possessions,...
Today's gospel is another persistent message to all of us to
answer the call of Jesus to spread the Good News of salvation. We are all
qualified for this job no matter what our situation and present status in life
is. We are good as is where is. The only thing God requires of us is our
genuine and sincere desire to do everything for God's glory and take away
whatever selfish or ulterior motives for personal gain. For if we completely
trust God then there is no need for us to be anxious about the matters of this
world. For as long as we know that we are minding God's business then everything
will be added unto us and He is able to provide for all our needs. We should
make a habit of aligning all our personal and temporal matters in accordance to
what is most pleasing before God for He can ultimately make all things
beautiful in His most perfect time. God is also telling us to do what we have to do and be the
best we can be in whatever place or situation we are in. Let us not give up
that easily when we are confronted with some disheartening events that come our
way. If we are truly sincere, honest and with all our best intentions in
striving to do what we ought and needed to do in the light of God’ s love then
His goodness, mercy and love will always see us through anything. At the end of
the day when we examine ourselves we can just gather all the good fruits of our
labor and just shake off whatever it is that clings to us that is not of the
Lord’s. Amen. Hallelujah!
Matthew 10:7-15
7 Jesus said to his Apostles: “As you go, make this
proclamation: ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ 8 Cure the sick, raise the
dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons. Without cost you have received; without
cost you are to give. 9 Do not take gold or silver or copper for your belts; 10
no sack for the journey, or a second tunic, or sandals, or walking stick. The
laborer deserves his keep. Whatever town or village
you enter, look for a worthy person in it, and stay there until you leave. As
you enter a house wish it peace. If the house is worthy, let your peace come
upon it; if not, let your peace return to you...go outside that house or town
and shake the dust from your feet...
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