Acts 5:34-42
...For if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin,
it will destroy itself. 39 But if it comes from God, you will not be able to
destroy them; you may even find yourselves fighting against God.” They were
persuaded by him...
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
Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14
R: One thing I seek: to dwell in the house of the Lord.
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) 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 stout-hearted, and wait for the LORD.
The gospel for today is about the miracle of the
multiplication of the bread and feeding of the five thousand. They were hungry
and satisfied. It is taken from John and according to Frances Hogan, it was
John the youngest of all the apostles who really wrote the gospel. The person
behind the gospel have seen and heard Jesus first hand. He came to Jesus as a
teenager and seems to know the heart of Jesus instinctively. It was to John
that Jesus gave His mother on the cross. John was taught by God's beloved
mother, Mary. As I have mentioned earlier, the book of John is known as the
book of signs. (Jn 1:19-12:50) The seven signs are miraculous deeds of Jesus
that reveal his true identity. They show Jesus bringing different types of
people to believe in Him while at the same time provoking many among the Jews
to hostility. The author interprets them for the reader by various reflections,
narratives and discourses. Many Jews were provoked to hostility on account of
the declarations of Jesus which they could not accept. (Jn 8:58- Jesus said to
them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM.";
When Moses saw God for the first time and asked God His name, He said, "I
AM".; Jn 10:30- The Father and I are one." The Jews again picked up
rocks to stone him.; Jn 6:51- I am the living bread that came down from heaven;
whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my
flesh for the life of the world." ; 6:55-56- For my flesh is true food,
and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains
in me and I in him. ; The bread here is not just like bread on the table and
just drink in a cup. Jn 5:17-18- But Jesus answered them, "My Father is at
work until now, so I am at work." For this reason the Jews tried all the
more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but he also called God
his own father, making himself equal to God. The gospel of John holds numerous
meanings that we can choose to be like Sherlock Holmes looking for clues to crack
open the mystery behind it. God has always wanted us to become the best persons
we ought to be. Our lives should be a testimony of God's glory. He wants us to
be always focused on this goal and if things are not turning toward this
direction then it is time to realign ourselves to God's agenda and not be
carried away by the enticements and false assurances of this world. The gospel
specifically said that Jesus went across the Sea of
Galilee and went up on the mountain. It hit me in the sense that
it is somehow telling us to go across the Sea of Galilee
and elevate ourselves to a higher level. This invitation is for all of us.
Sometimes we get too comfortable doing the old thing and whatever we have
gotten used to. It is time for us to go past it and take the challenge of
climbing a higher level for the greater glory of God. Jesus in the gospel today
said this to Philip “Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?” He said
this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do.” It's a good
thing His disciples responded and cooperated with Jesus. The same with us, we
may be asked by God to go out of our comfort zones and practical outlook. You
know why? So that God can perform His miracle in our life. It emphasizes the
truth that God will never allow us to grow hungry and will always provide for
our needs. There is no need to go anywhere else for nourishment. There is no
need to go away and search elsewhere. We only have to go to God for only Him
can satisfy all our longings and desires. We may all know about the story in
today's gospel and have heard it several
times already but somehow lost the element of surprise already. But if we will
look at it very closely we will discover much more amazing things than we
already know. It was not just the satisfying and healing of the physical hunger
and deformities that God can do for us but more than we are able to really
comprehend. God can go beyond the satisfaction of our physical needs. There is
really no one or nothing else we can rely and depend on more than God. We have
a very generous God that He gives us more than enough and even went beyond our
satisfaction levels. Which I gathered is symbolized by the number 7 which means
perfect and was used to describe the fragments left over that they picked up.
God assures in the readings for today that we will never go hungry or thirsty
for anything at all be it physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. Since
today's readings emphasizes the fact that we will be fed and satisfied by the
Lord this reminded me of our visit to Sis Ester's house for our block rosary.
We were all so blessed to experience the generosity of Sis Ester in welcoming
us in their home. She had gone out of her way for several days just to accommodate
us in their home. We hadn't been just fed but also end up with “to go” treats.
This outward display of affection on her part gives us much joy and makes us
appreciate even more the goodness of God. Although a pale comparison to the
fiesta galore or great banquet in heaven that we all look forward to but
definitely a foretaste of the best that is yet to come. In the gospel, all
they've got is the seven loaves and few fish which is nothing in proportion to
the great crowd that Jesus wanted to feed. Well, I guess ratio and proportion
does not apply to the limitless power of God. We may think that we are in a
desperate situation or we are a hopeless case. We must not underestimate what
God can do. We just have to go to God "as is where is" just like any
other junk material that can be bought in whatever condition, God will take us
exactly as we are and do the necessary work and miracle for us. God will not
just provide for our needs but more. He is indeed a God who is more than
enough! Just as Bishop Fulton Sheen was emphasizing in his talk that there is a
need to see and live both sides of life. As there is a tragic and comic side to
it, Jesus in today’s gospel also did the same thing. He attended to not only
the spiritual need of the people but also their physical needs. If we sometimes
feel that we are in a pitiful situation and nothing good is happening to us, we
better think twice before we wallow up in self pity and depression. More than
the miracle of feeding the five thousand, God is telling us to focus more on
His compassionate heart that nourishes us physically and spiritually as well
because only Jesus can satisfy us. We have a God who will not only satisfy one
aspect of our life but all of it. In today's gospel, the vast crowd who
followed Jesus in a deserted place despite of being late was not disappointed. It
gives us the assurance that God will always rescue us and work for the good.
Neither will he abandon or forsake us for He knows what we need even before we
ask it. So no matter what our situations may seem to appear, whether we feel
like we've been abandoned in a deserted place and things are running late, we
should always trust God to give us everything we need and have been praying for.
We are also invited to look at the beautiful truths contained in the gospel.
This is the only miracle that appears in all four gospels. The others appear
only in 3 or less. We can gain insight and a deeper faith in God by focusing on
these words, Bethlehem Bethlehem Alexandria
John 6:1-15
1 Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee .
2 A large crowd followed him, because they saw the signs he was performing on
the sick. 3 Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his
disciples. 4 The Jewish feast of Passover was near. 5 When Jesus raised his
eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip, “Where
can we buy enough food for them to eat?” 6 He said this to test him, because he
himself knew what he was going to do. 7 Philip answered him, “Two hundred days’
wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little.” 8
One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him, 9 “There
is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these
for so many?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people recline.” Now there was a great
deal of grass in that place. So the men reclined, about five thousand in
number. 11 Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to
those who were reclining, and also as much of the fish as they wanted. 12 When
they had had their fill, he said to his disciples, “Gather the fragments left
over, so that nothing will be wasted.” 13 So they collected them, and filled
twelve wicker baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves that had been
more than they could eat. 14 When the people saw the sign he had done, they
said, “This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world.” 15
Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off to make him
king, he withdrew again to the mountain alone.
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