We do not know

In the gospel today, we see two people Jesus talked to. One, a scribe, told that he wanted to follow Jesus. However, Jesus did not encourage him, so probably we can say he did not follow Christ. Then Jesus asked a man to follow him immediately, and we can say that he did eventually follow Christ.

At first, it seems unclear why Jesus rejected the scribe and called another one. However, they say that it is because Jesus sees the heart. The scribe was proud and seem to be full of emotions when he told Jesus he will follow him wherever he goes. Mayabang. Jesus knew his intentions, that he was not really sincere in his desire to follow Jesus, so sinabihan na sya ni Jesus na hindi madali maging alagad. Then, dahil the intention is not pure, he backs out.

The other one Jesus called. When he said he has to take care of his dead father first, Jesus asked him to prioritize him over the dead father. Jesus tells us that nothing should come in between our service to him. And when he calls us, we definitely will follow.

In our lives, there are things that will happen that we will not readily understand. We do not know why certain things happen. We do not know why certain things have to happen. There may be hurts and pains, sadness and disappointments in our lives that we feel is un necessary, or we feel could have been easily avoided, or that we should not have been subjected to… but as the gospel reminds us, we should look deeper. Try to see things in the eyes of Jesus. We should try to look at the heart, and have faith that whatever happens is what God wanted to happen. Life is not fair, and following Christ will not always be easy. However, we are reminded that Christ will be with us every step of the way, and when he calls us and we respond, he will take care of everything.

What things are bothering me right now? Are there things that I don’t understand in my life? Is God calling me to serve him? How? How do I respond?

Dear God,

I thank you for this brand new week. I thank you for the weekend. Lord, I ask that you strengthen my faith, especially when I don’t understand things that are happening. May I always put my focus on you and remember that everything will happen according to your will. Amen.

Have a blessed week!

In Christ,

-g-