We can not deny the fact that we all have a darkness lurking
within us. It could be in the form of a sickness, financial problem, stressed
relationship with family or a loved one and a work problem that cause
heartaches. The good news is that we have already been saved by God. There’s no
need to be tied down to this darkness for the light of God has shone. There is
hope that the Lord will deliver us from our miseries and bring joy in our
hearts. Amen. Hallelujah!
Isaiah 8:23-9:3
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light;
upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone. 2 You have brought
them abundant joy and great rejoicing, as they rejoice before you as at the
harvest, as men make merry when dividing spoils. 3 For the yoke that burdened
them, the pole on their shoulder, and the rod of their taskmaster you have
smashed
Brothers and sisters, if we are confident that we are where
we are supposed to be and the Lord allowed things to happen in our life the way
they are happening right now then we should be still and know that God is in
control. We need to understand the mysteries of our faith in order to
appreciate it better. We have to go near as much as possible to the Word of God
and experience it come to life and see His glory shining on us. As we go near
Him we see his face and feel His love. We always have hope in the Lord who
knows what's best for each one of us. There should be no doubt in our minds that
He answers prayers. All we have to do is call on the Lord, trust that He hears
the sound of our call and wait for Him with courage. When we get carried away
by all the commotion there is a tendency that we neglect the essential and most
central issue which is to always believe that we shall see the good things of
the Lord in the land of the living. There is really nothing that we should
worry about if we always hold in our hearts the truth about Jesus. There may be
times when we encounter disappointments and setbacks in life but this doesn't
mean that God has stopped becoming the Loving God that He is, who suffered His
only Begotten Son to die on the cross for our sake. Our focus should be on the
truth of this love and everything that it stands for. This reminded me of a
mini play staged in EWTN of a passenger waiting to be boarded on the airplane.
He was the 1st and only person in the boarding area waiting patiently for his
seat reservation to be called. He got surprised when someone came along and
hardly ever waited when his seat number was called. He felt somehow annoyed at
the idea of someone who just came and did not wait but got on the plane first
although he managed to stop himself from making a scene. A lady with her young
child also came and looked very excited to board the plane but he tried to warn
them not to keep their hopes up too much because it would definitely take time
and said that he had been waiting for a long time and came early but his number
had not been called yet. To his surprise their numbers were called and happily
boarded while he was once again left behind. He simply couldn't stand it
anymore when a pleasant young lady came with all smiles on her face and
speaking of how excited she is to board an airplane for the first time. The company
of this nice lady kept her impatience at bay. She advised him to stop thinking
about how the others were able to get there quickly but rather think of the joy
he would have once he gets there. She assured him to just relax and make the
most of his time because he has a reservation and a ticket all he needs to do
is just wait. He did exactly just that and found himself at peace until the
time his number was called. The same thing happens to the best of us when we
are confronted with a tedious and exasperating process of waiting. We tend to
lose our peace and joy and succumb to worry and doubt. If we are holding on to
something that was assured to us by a trustworthy and reliable source we can
put our worries to rest. Although sometimes anxiety can still find its way to
our hearts and forget on whom our confidence lies. If we remain in the Lord and put our trust in
Him then there is nothing we should worry about. In life, there are 4 things
which are 1. sin 2. grace 3. forgiveness 4. reconciliation that we could all
learn a lot from. The 1st 3 are all a reality but #4 is only a possibility.
Reconciliation calls us to true conversion. An example that fits this is a
snake and caterpillar since both of them undergoes conversion. The snake sheds
off its old skin but comes out the same while the caterpillar emerges into a
butterfly. We have to ponder and think about setting our goals high, keeping
our thoughts positive and coming up with new solutions. There is no room for
fear for He is consistent to His nature as God. Let us strive to become the
child He has meant us to be. Another thing we could learn something about is a
puzzle. I am one person who never even thought of working on a jigsaw puzzle. I
am not the type of person who would bother to even buy one. It just happened
that when I was in Japan
and saw all sorts of things which are being sold in a bazaar, I ended up buying
one for no reason at all. In fact it took years before I finally opened it and
put the puzzle together. That was when I actually experienced how to do it. It
takes patience and perseverance to do it especially with the complicated
puzzles. Sometimes in life we just back out and give up when things become
complicated and when we do, we fail to witness the bounty of the Lord. As today
psalm tells us, we've got to wait with courage and be stout hearted. We should
all long for the day when we will have 100% confidence level in all our
decisions for God. When the time comes it will totally remove all forms of
anxiety and fear and incline ourselves to Him at all times. It should be our
ultimate desire and nothing else, to always be in the presence of the Lord. To
abide in Him at all times even when things are not very good. I could never
forget and would always remember those times when I used to pick figs at Sis
Loreta's garden. It was then that a thought came to my mind while I was
climbing a ladder in order to get the figs in hard to reach places. Despite the
fact that I was already on top of the ladder there were still some figs that I
was not able to see and pick up right away although it was already right in
front of me. They are being covered by the leaves of the tree and some are
hidden in between branches. I just realized that it could be compared to how
God showers us with all the blessings and graces that we need. There are times
when we fail to see it though it is already right in front of us. Sometimes we
have to really look very closely and try to turn our gaze into different angles
in order to see it. What's funny was that when I thought that I've got almost
every ripe fig in the tree, I noticed one big ripe fruit at the lowest part of
the tree, there was even no need to use a ladder in order to get it. Sometimes
in life we resort to a lot of means that are sometimes no longer necessary. All
we have to do is believe that we will see the good things of the Lord in the
land of the living if we will just be patient and full of courage. We ought to
realize that if we wait on the Lord patiently and persevere long enough we will
never be disappointed for He alone is our light and salvation. Amen.
Hallelujah!
Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14
R: The Lord is my light and my salvation.
1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom should I fear?
The LORD is my life’s refuge; of whom should I be afraid? (R) 4 One thing I ask
of the LORD; this I seek: to dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my
life, that I may gaze on the loveliness of the LORD and contemplate his temple.
(R) 13 I believe that I shall see the bounty of the LORD in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the LORD with courage; be stouthearted, and wait for the LORD.
We all belong to Christ and there should be no divisions
among us. Although this is something that is very difficult to achieve at times
because of differences in the personalities of people but we can always strive
to do our best. We know that Christ died not just for a selected few but for
all. He loves us all without any partiality. Let us not look on the weaknesses
of each one but rather magnify the goodness that every person has and avoid
making comparisons for the saving power of the cross is offered to us all. The value of the cross embedded in us is
worth more than all the shortcomings and deficiencies we have. Amen.
Hallelujah!
1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17
10 I urge you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord
Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, and that there be no
divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and in the same
purpose. 11 For it has been reported to me about you, my brothers, by Chloe’s
people, that there are rivalries among you. 12 I mean that each of you is
saying, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apollos,” or “I belong to Kephas,”
or “I belong to Christ.” 13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were
you baptized in the name of Paul? 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but
to preach the gospel, and not with the wisdom of human eloquence, so that the
cross of Christ might not be emptied of its meaning.
Maintaining a physically fit and healthy body is not an easy
task. We may have seen athletes train really hard in most days of the week or
even everyday just to achieve their goals. Sometimes when we do make a decision
to embark on an exercise program there are times when we feel so sluggish and feels
like we just want to sit back and relax. We know for a fact that if we want to
see results we have to commit to a fitness regimen and follow it strictly.
Although there are some issues with regards to some really obese people who
were thought to have the fat genes and are more predisposed to being fat which
I guess would make things more difficult for some people to really stay in tip
top shape, physically speaking. But we have also seen extremely obese people
who were able to win the battle of the bulge. Their determination and
dedication really paid well. Although for some there are those who yo-yo back
to their old shape so it is not just about committing to it for a certain
period of time but for life. It just dawned on me that aiming for a spiritually
fit and healthy body works in a similar way. In today's gospel God is urging us
to rise up from darkness and respond to His call and follow Him. Although we
have already been endowed by God with the gift of eternal life the battle for
our souls does not stop. Though, we have
been purchased for a price by God’s own Son who gave His life and shed His
blood on the cross. The enemy who has been defeated just doesn’t want to give
up. We can only marvel at its persistence in getting a hold of our souls. We just
have to always be in touch with the truth and never let it slip our minds. We
are destined for the Kingdom
of God
Matthew 4:12-23
…the people who sit in darkness have seen a great light, on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death light has arisen.” From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” …From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand.”…
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