If we sometimes feel so tired and fed up with what's going
on with our life then there is no reason for us to lose hope if we believe that
we are under the care of a loving, merciful and just God. Each of us is called
to fulfill our God given destiny here on earth. We can consider ourselves God's
co-workers if we take upon ourselves the mission to spread the Good News of
salvation that Jesus has won for us. We need not do exactly as Apollos and Paul
in today's 1st reading. It doesn't matter whenever, wherever, whatever and
whoever. We can contribute to the growth of God's Kingdom right here and right
now. Amen. Hallelujah!
1 Corinthians 3:1-9
...What is Apollos, after all, and what is Paul? Ministers
through whom you became believers, just as the Lord assigned each one. 6 I
planted, Apollos watered, but God caused the growth. 7 Therefore, neither the
one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who causes the
growth. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters are equal, and each will
receive wages in proportion to his labor. 9 For we are God’s co-workers; you
are God’s field, God’s building.
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 down 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!
Psalm 33:12-13, 14-15, 20-21
R: Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.
...From heaven the LORD looks down; he sees all mankind. (R)
14 From his fixed throne he beholds all who dwell on the earth, 15 he who
fashioned the heart of each, he who knows all their works. (R) 20 Our soul
waits for the LORD, who is our help and our shield, 21 for in him our hearts
rejoice; in his holy name we trust.
We may all be in a situation or state wherein we think that
we are already doing good in our service to God without realizing that we have
actually reached our plateaus and we need to move on to another level. In order
to do this we need to exert not just more but extra strength to do this. Those
who are working out in a gym or in physical fitness regimen for a long time may
know what this is about. There will come a point wherein we do not see results
as often as when we just started, that's the plateau. It's time to be more
creative and add more challenges in the workout to see results and achieve
goals. Today's gospel tells us that Jesus did not just stay in one place but
went to the other towns. It may not necessarily mean for us that we have to go
to another place. It simply challenges us to move on to the next level and
improve our performance. Jesus tells us not to get stuck but move on. Nothing
is impossible with God all things are possible. We've heard and seen so many
miracles throughout our lifetime and thus we should always remember them and
cling to them so that it will serve as our light and guide as we go on our way
always hoping that God will never deprive us of our own miracles. Today's
gospel also reminded me of Atty. Moya's talk on the 8th commandment, "Thou
shall not bear false witness against your neighbor." This is centered on
truth and honesty. It forbids all kinds of falsehood and commands total
truthfulness: love & live the truth. But what made me share this has
something to do with the example in today's gospel when Jesus silenced the evil
spirit who was telling the truth about Him. It goes to show that there are
times when we are not supposed to tell the truth all the time. That there are
some things better left unsaid if it's not charitable or it could hurt someone.
It also reminds us not to be too quick to judge other people. We have to
exercise prudence and seek to always mitigate the situation rather than
instigate or push someone to anger and cause to destroy relationships or hurt
people. The Devil is not only the father of lies but also the master of deception.
He can twist the truth and use it to his evil advantage. We should always have
the deep respect for the truth and know the importance of appropriateness of
communication. We must reconcile truth and charity which tells us to keep
silent or hide the truth for the sake of charity. CCC 2469 "Men could not
live with one another if there were not mutual confidence that they were being
truthful to one another." The virtue of truth gives another his just due.
Truthfulness keeps to the just mean between what ought to be expressed and what
ought to be kept secret: it entails honesty and discretion. In justice,
"as a matter of honor, one man owes it to another to manifest the
truth." Respect for the Truth in Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC)
2488 states the right to the communication of the truth is not unconditional.
Everyone must conform his life to the Gospel precept of fraternal love. This
requires us in concrete situations to judge whether or not it is appropriate to
reveal the truth to someone who asks for it. CCC 2489 Charity and respect for
the truth should dictate the response to every request for information or
communication. The good and safety of others, respect for privacy, and the
common good are sufficient reasons for being silent about what ought not be
known or for making use of a discreet LANGUAGE. The duty to avoid scandal often
commands strict discretion. No one is bound to reveal the truth to someone who
does not have the right to know it. Amen. Hallelujah!
Luke 4:38-44
...38 And Jesus rising up out of the synagogue, went into
Simon's house. And Simon's wife's mother was taken with a great fever, and they
besought him for her. 39 And standing over her, he commanded the fever, and it
left her...But he laying his hands on every one of them, healed them. 41 And
devils went out from many, crying out and saying: Thou art the Son of God. And
rebuking them he suffered them not to speak, for they knew that he was
Christ...But he said to them, “To the other towns also I must proclaim the good
news of the kingdom
of God
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