Jonah 4:1-11
...But God said to Jonah, “Have you reason to be angry over
the plant?” “I have reason to be angry,” Jonah answered, “angry enough to die.”
10 Then the LORD said, “You are concerned over the plant which cost you no
labor and which you did not raise; it came up in one night and in one night it
perished...
We have to be grateful to God for He is indeed merciful and
gracious in all His ways. He gives us not just one but various options when it
comes to accessing the graces He is dispensing and showering upon us. God
provides all means in order for us to avail of all the blessings He wants to
give us. When things are about to come to an end or maybe has reached its final
stages and been waiting for quite a long time already and yet things are still
uncertain as to how it will all turn out then we are placed in a very
challenging situation as to how we are to react. Whether in despair or continue
to hope in the Lord is always a choice we have to make. But oftentimes, things
are easier said than done but it is always a consolation to know that we have a
God who always show us the way. It is a reality that we have to attend to a lot
of things waiting for us to be done. God wants us to become individuals capable
of handling things in our lives with balance, in whatever we do, He is always
with us. We may have been surprised by
some kind of news from somebody while thinking about a particular concern and
even before we can come up with a solution it was already addressed. It is a
blessing from the Lord that when times like these come when we are having a
dilemma or unable to access of one option there are still other choices left
that we can make use of. God never leaves us empty handed, He always has
reinforcement and a back up. Let us not lose sight of the Lord who loves us and
will always rescue us in our miseries and make us glad. Life is not all about
rules and regulations. God did not just give us a bunch of rules and
regulations that we are supposed to obey like machines. What we do does not
just proceed from who we are but also makes us who we are. The actions we engage, the words that we say
and the things that we do have an impact on us. We are making ourselves all the
time. God created us when we came out of the womb, our mothers and father have
a great role in that but our creation continues every single day of our lives.
We’re even becoming someone more beautiful, mature and stronger or someone
weaker and more despicable. There’s no middle ground. We’re going one way or
another. Life leads either to heaven or to hell. That’s what the acts that we
commit do. Virtuous acts build in us strength. The word virtue comes from the
word manly which is strength and power. Virtue is a habit that makes it easy
and pleasurable to do the right thing. Golden virtue isn’t always easy. It is
hard. But what is vice, it is a habit that makes it easy to do the wrong and
evil thing. Let’s take exercise as an example. People make it their New Year’s
resolution and people who go to the gym noticed that it’s packed on January but
they’re gone by the 3rd week. If we’ve ever engaged in an exercise program for
the first time, we know that we feel bad, tired, exhausted and wake up sore.
This is because we do not have the habit of exercise. We have not trained and
our bodies are not used to it. It hurts and it’s hard the first time we work
out. If we persevere past the first few weeks and developed a habit of regular
exercise then we end up getting used to it and become easy that when we don’t
exercise we feel bad. What happens is that we build up the power or the virtue.
We’ve conditioned ourselves so that it becomes second nature to us. If we want
a progressive course we need to do something hard. No pain no gain. The next
time we work out we add up a little bit more since we are stronger. We can move
forward and grow in our ability to lift weights. This is the deal. The actions
we do have an impact of what we are. It’s like when we start lifting weights we
start to change and look different. We look like someone who has strength,
power and endurance. This is the point, God is about building champions. The
goal of the Christian life is to build champions. Well, not necessarily
athletic champions but spiritually. A real champion in every aspect of life.
God wants us to be strong, loving, wise and to have the power to live. It’s not
so much what we do that counts but it’s who we become. That’s what the
commandments, teachings and God is all about. Nowadays, a fatal disease is no
longer fatal but just a life threatening disease if left uncared for. Modern
Science has come up with several interventions to combat these diseases. When
we don’t feel well, we consult a doctor for advice on how to care for
ourselves. An example could be hypertension, before people just die of it
without prior treatment but since the dawn of anti hypertensive medicines and
proper care to maintain a good blood pressure there has been significant
improvement on such cases. The same with our souls we have a disease that if
left uncared for can cause death. It would be better to think of our souls as
such. It’s easier to be receptive to the gospel if we consider ourselves lost.
We have been saved by God but we can lose it just as we can lose our human life
for not caring for it. We all have a terminal disease called sin, we need a
doctor to give us advice. Our souls need a Divine Physician and consult the
sacred scriptures in order to know the things to follow. The sacraments serve
as the medication that we can compare to medicine from the doctor that we don’t
understand how it works. It is the same with the sacraments although we may not
understand fully how it works just like how medicines work to cure our
diseases. In the spiritual life our physician is Jesus Christ, He tells us what
to do on how to be healed. We must not follow quacks and pseudo scientists. We
must trust our souls not to quacks but to God. We follow the saints who have
lived their life in an exemplary nature. We should also follow the example of
the great men in the bible who never doubted God's goodness and mercy. In this
way we become free of the serious symptoms of the sicknesses of the soul like
pride, covetousness, envy, lust, sloth, anger and gluttony. We seek the truth
and the truth will make us free. Amen. Hallelujah!
P S A L M
Psalm 86:3-4. 5-6. 9-10
R: Lord, you are merciful and gracious.
3 Have mercy on me, O Lord, for to you I call all the day. 4
Gladden the soul of your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. (R) 5
For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in kindness to all who call
upon you. 6 Hearken, O LORD, to my prayer and attend to the sound of my
pleading. (R) 9 All the nations you have made shall come and worship you, O
Lord, and glorify your name. 10 For you are great, and you do wondrous deeds;
you alone are God.
Today's gospel tells us that God won't neglect us and always
provide for all our needs. My elder son, Jude when he was still a young boy was
so difficult to feed. He prefers to eat all the junk, sweet and empty in
nutrition food. In order for him to eat the right kind of food we would resort
to all kinds of strategies but would often end up in disagreement because he
never seem to understand why I needed to force him to eat the right kind of
food instead of the type of food he prefers to eat at all times. Now that he's
older, I need not resort to the old tactics I used to do just to feed him. He
can now understand the principle of proper nutrition, I guess, and I hope that
he has learned the values of eating good and nutritious food. God in the same
manner remains as patient and steadfast in His love for us. God won't neglect
us and always provide for all our needs. The gospel also mentions a man who is
very persistent in asking for something from his friend. We should praise and
thank God because the gospel assures and gives us new found strength and
confidence that whatever we have been praying for a long time already has been
heard by God. We just have to continue lifting everything to God unceasingly.
We must always have that attitude of hope and expectant faith in our God the
Father in heaven. We must believe that our persistent prayers to God will bear
fruit. God is merciful, loving and concerned over our own welfare that He
continues to be the perfect Father and parent to us always. Several years ago,
my younger son, Allan requested something from me which I am not fully capable
of providing by myself. As I look back and recall all the things that took
place and upon reading today's gospel it made me realize that every single step
involved in it is indeed a testimony that we have a God who make all things
possible. After all the things that happened within that period, from people
who extended a lending hand, to the circumstances and events that went along
with it which made everything fell into place up to the time when it has been
declared officially that Allan has finally got a hold of it, one thing is sure,
we have a Father in heaven who loves us more than we'll ever know. These
memories are very significant in the sense that whenever I talk with my sons, I
always emphasize to them the truth of the message and reflection of today’s
gospel. When we deal with problems which we have been bothered for years we
sometimes just have to let go and let God and before we know it they are
already resolved. God has indeed provided us every possible means in order for
us to live a full and happy life. I believe that if we always come to God in
prayer He is always ready to answer us. It should be emphasized, what Padre Pio
said, that prayer is the best armor we have, it is the key which opens the
heart of God. Prayer is something that we can make use of at all times, we only
have to will it, whatever, whenever, wherever we may be. God goes all the way
in fulfilling everything for us even teaching us how to pray. The truth is
there is really nothing more God can give us that He has not given to us, for
He has already shown and taught to us the most important thing for us to do
which is pray. It is one of the most important tools to always be attuned to
God. We all have to pray. When we have access to the heart of God then we can
hear the beating of His heart and synchronize our own hearts to His and make
beautiful rhythm together. It is when we follow where God leads us that we
create a harmonious relationship with God. When the heart of God speaks and we
listen then we will never go astray. Amen. Hallelujah!
Luke 11:1-4
1 Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had
finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray just as
John taught his disciples.” 2 He said to them, “When you pray, say: Father,
hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread 4
and forgive us our sins for we ourselves forgive everyone in debt to us, and do
not subject us to the final test.”
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