BE THE CLAY

 I saw on TV that used cooking oil which is already considered as waste can be used as an alternative source of fuel. Isn't it great that people nowadays come up with novel ideas from out of scratch. Men have great and brilliant minds proven by the latest trends, innovations and technological advancements being seen nowadays. But we are just a speck as compared to the greatness and brilliance of the mind of the one who created us. All the more that we should never get tired of believing that God can come up with something great even from something like garbage. We may have committed numerous blunders and errors in our lives but God can turn our biggest mistakes into blessings. He can always bring out the best in us no matter what we've been through if we only liken ourselves to the clay held by the potter in today's 1st reading and decide right now to place everything in God's hands. Amen. Hallelujah!

Jeremiah 18: 1-61 4 Whenever the object of clay which he was making turned out badly in his hand, he tried again, making of the clay another object of whatever sort he pleased. 5 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 6 Can I not do to you, house of Israel, as this potter has done? says the LORD. Indeed, like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, house of Israel.

Not once did the word of God ever failed. My mother used to say that God loves the fatherless and the widow in a very special way as if nothing else matters. I grew up as a child constantly hearing her say this and believing it myself as I was growing up and knowing more about the Lord. She has greatly influenced my faith in God. I should say that wherever she may be right now, which I feel, think and believe is in the company of God with all His angels and saints in heaven, her memory will live on forever in my heart and the hearts of the people whose lives she touched. According to St. Therese, the poorer you are the more Jesus will love you. The world's point of view is very contradictory to the beatitudes. The world chooses strength over weakness and poverty. What seems to be foolish for the world and folly to man is wisdom to God. Jesus is attracted to our poverty and weakness because it is where we meet Jesus. Unlike the world who is attracted to strength and hires the smartest and world’s greatest. We have all kinds of difficulties and struggles. These are what drive us to Christ to cling to Him. Instead of always trying to complain and talk about it what we do is keep our eyes on the Lord. Sometimes He places something before us that He wants us to do. The challenge for us is to turn to Him in our weakness and cling to Him in prayer, faith, hope, love and abandon ourselves to Him. Let us trust God's mastery and expertise to mold and make of us a masterpiece, a genuine work of His hands. Today’s psalm reading mentioned the word captives which reminded me of priest’s talk on “New Kind of War” several years ago. There are always captives in war and he mentioned that we, Christians must be aware of the war that our adversary, the devil is waging on us. We have a very committed and determined adversary. Looking at the present moral condition of people here in the US he said that he is not surprised at all at how things are turning out in the present moment since the moral demise of a country precedes the ultimate demise. Whatever may be happening around us and could be getting worse with each passing day, we can be assured that God will help His friends but not His enemies. We need to know on which side we are. It is indeed a difficult battle we are facing in our lives but we must remember that human beings do not do well when all is well. We are strengthened by the trials just like steel that is subjected to heat in order to temper it. Greatness is forced on a lot of people just like what happened to those people after the incident in the Sept. 11 tragedy. It is pushed in the crucible of tribulation but despite of it we can be assured of the promises stated in today psalm. We should continue to rely on our one true source of help for only Him can satisfy our soul. God's help is all the help we need, nothing more and nothing less. We ought to realize by now what the wisest thing to do is not based in the standard of the world but of the Lord our God. Our confidence and trust must rest on the Lord alone who makes all good things possible. If we will always fill our hearts with gratitude and praise for the Lord then we will realize how things in our life turned out for good which seem to be not the case at the time it was happening for our God is faithful and everything that is said in today's psalm. Our hope should only be in the Lord for He alone keeps faith, secures justice, gives good, sets captives free, gives sight to the blind and raises up the lowly. It is a consolation to know and be reminded of it so as to always keep in mind that we have a God who is everything that we ever need, want and long for.

If God is able to do all things then there is really nothing to fear. We can always count on God to make things turn out for the best. Let us not be dismayed or discouraged by our circumstances for He will surely fulfill what He has promised. Amen. Hallelujah!

Psalm 146: 1b-2 , 3-4, 5-6ab

R: Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.

3 Put not your trust in princes, in the sons of men, in whom there is no salvation. 4 When his spirit departs he returns to his earth; on that day his plans perish. (R) Blessed he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the LORD, his God, 6 who made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them. (R)

It is not easy to be molded like clay. If there’s one thing that stopping us from becoming what God has meant us to be it is our free will because we can say yes and no to God. It is important that we do not lose sight of the truth that we are created in God's mastery and expertise and we are His masterpiece, a genuine work of His hands. If we can confidently and honestly say after careful examination of our lives that we are indeed the product of God's hands then we can stand firm on that dreary day mentioned in today's gospel. Amen. Hallelujah!

Matthew 13:47-53

47 Jesus said to his disciples: “The kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea, which collects fish of every kind. 48 When it is full they haul it ashore and sit down to put what is good into buckets. What is bad they throw away. 49 Thus it will be at the end of the age. The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous 50 and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.