Nothing or no one can deny the transforming power of God.
Paul's life is a testimony of this. No matter how hopeless, impossible or
desperate things may seem to be never ever doubt that something great can still
come out of it. Sometimes God calls or makes use of the unlikely people and
situations for a greater purpose than what we have in mind. He allows these
things to happen for a reason. As we may all know Paul's life is the so called
gold standard of conversion because the end point is all for the glory of God.
Amen. Hallelujah!
Galatians 1:13-24
I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel
preached by me is not of human origin. For I did not receive it from a human
being, nor was I taught it, but it came through a revelation of Jesus Christ.
For you heard of my former way of life in Judaism,
how I persecuted the church of God
Technology has become so advanced nowadays that nothing
remains unknown for long. With the latest in probes, sensors and the like in
just one click of the computer everything is laid before us. Sometimes it just
goes too far and out of bounds and we fail to conform and align all these
innovations to the Author and Inventor of all these things. Let us not forget,
He is the source of everything there was, is and will be. In the midst of all
the trouble we're going through it is always a consolation to know that we have
a God who knows every single thing that is going on with us and He cares and
loves us a lot. For indeed in today's psalm reading is another confirmation
that God knows our deepest thoughts and longings. We should always be aware of
this undeniable truth that God's Spirit dwells in each one of us. There is no
reason to doubt what today's psalm speaks about with regards to our relationship
with our Creator. May we not forget and always remember who we are before the
eyes of God. We can never allow our flesh, things of this world and the enemy
to lure, confuse and deceive us any longer. It helps to always remember what St. Paul wrote in Ephesians
6:11-13, "Put on the armor of God so that you may be able to stand firm
against the tactics of the devil. For our struggle is not with flesh and blood
but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this
present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens. Therefore, put on the
armor of God, that you may be able to resist on the evil day..." We are who we are in the eyes of God and not
what the flesh, the world and the destructive enemy wants us to believe. We are special to God, He calls each one of
us by name. This reminds me of this lady who used to ask me, "How do I
look?" I would always reply, "You're beautiful." But she would
say in return, "Oh you're full of baloney" and every time I would
just laugh back at her. Eventually I got inspired to respond to her differently
when I told her that it is not baloney but it's biblical that we are all beautiful.
In fact the Tagalog translation in text message that I have received is quite
funny, it goes something like this, "Kilabot sa ganda, nanginginig
pa" (I give you thanks that I am fearfully, wonderfully made; wonderful
are your works.) which is stated right here in today's psalm. As man, we have
the concupiscence or the natural inclination to the flesh, lust, greed and
pride. The perfect formula for self destruction is based on this popular and
well subscribed saying that goes like this, "If it feels good just do
it." Pope John Paul II in his book, "Splendor of Truth" said
that the power to decide what is good and evil is not within the power of man.
This is clear in the book of Genesis when He forbid our 1st parents to eat of
the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. God gave us the free
will and the source of conflict came from the inability to acknowledge God as
our Creator and that only Him can define morality. Man doesn't make rules of
morality, we only discover it. The 10 commandments are an expression of God's
love and the means to have true freedom which means the ability to do what we
ought to do and not what we want to do. Catholic Morality is under attack as
issues on abortion and artificial contraception have become so liberated. We
should be firm in our stand not give in or budge an inch as we stand by the
teachings of the Church. We should all value the special care and attention
that God has given to us as His most valued among all of His creation. Our life
is precious this we know is true as stated in today's psalm. Amen. Hallelujah!
Psalm 139:1b-3, 13-14ab, 23-24
R: Guide me, Lord, along the everlasting way.
1 O LORD, you have probed me and you know me; 2 you know
when I sit and when I stand; you understand my thoughts from afar. 3 My
journeys and my rest you scrutinize, with all my ways you are familiar. (R) 13
Truly you have formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother’s womb. 14 I
give you thanks that I am fearfully, wonderfully made; wonderful are your
works.
Everything really happens for a reason and we have to take
seriously the call or mission that God is entrusting to us. This invitation is
not just for Martha whose name Jesus called twice in today’s gospel. God have been
calling us not just twice but many times. It's time we respond to the call by choosing
the best part. Every day of our lives we are confronted with choices and
decisions that we have to make. Whether it is big or small, major or minor and
high or low impact it is in our disposition in relation to it that makes all
the difference. If we have made a choice or a decision then we have to stand by
it and be at peace with it. Most
especially if we know that we have consulted to God all our plans and humbly
obeyed then nothing should ever bother us. Let us be reminded through the
gospel today that worry and anxiety is not a composition of a decision or
choice made within the presence and will of God. Just like Mary we should also
find ourselves beside the Lord at His feet listening to Him speak. It is with
genuine peace, calm and serenity that we should conduct our affairs. In doing
so we acknowledge that God has always been guiding and directing us every
single step of the way. We should
realize the importance of bearing the fruit of peace and self control rather
than anxiety and worry which arose from the burden of Martha's service. We are
all guilty of being just like Martha at times when we succumb to worry and
anxiety not focusing our attentions on Jesus instead. Service pleases God and
is important in order to grow in our relationship with Him but we should
maintain a balance that we must not neglect what's most essential, end up with
misplaced values and defeating the good end/purpose for which it was intended.
May we all come to the point where we too, like Mary can comfortably sit and
listen attentively to Jesus in the midst of our busy world. She is not bothered
by its concerns, made the right choice and blessed with the better part as
spoken by Jesus. We need to get over the things that hinder us from fully
experiencing the best that can never be taken away. We need to know what our
options are and choose well. If we have found the contentment and confidence
that Mary developed in Jesus brought about by the right choices that she made
then we can be assured that it will not be taken away. Amen. Hallelujah!
Luke 10:38-42
...Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said,
“Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving?
Tell her to help me.” 41 The Lord said to her in reply, “Martha, Martha, you
are anxious and worried about many things. 42 There is need of only one thing.
Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.”
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