They
say that history repeats itself. Things happen over and over again because as
they say, the test will not end until the lesson is learned. This is because people
can be forgetful. We forget experiences and lessons of the past and just focus
on the present. That is why things are bound to happen again if we do not
remember the lesson and repeat the same mistakes over again. This is why it is
good to be reminded from time to time.
God is a great
and powerful God, just in case we forget.
In the first reading, Job
reminds us who God is. We see the things we sometimes, or oftentimes, take
for granted, things we think are normal or things we don’t even think
about. It is God who created everything and tells everything what to
do. The sun – how it rises and sets, the sky – how it behaves and how the
clouds form, the sea – how deep it is, how dark the depths of the sea is, these
are just some of the things God created and arranges. These things, which we
overlook, or oftentimes do not understand, are all God’s work. Even these
things we take for granted are under the supervision of God.
God created
everything. And he is powerful.
We
see that no one and nothing can match God's power and might. He can do
anything. He can do as he pleases. And we as human beings are his creation. We
may feel we deserve things, but we should not impose on God. We should not feel
entitled. Just as Job reminds us how special we should feel if God hears us,
listens to us, and gives us what we ask. God, the almighty and powerful being,
listens to us. Wow.
In the busyness of life, we
sometimes forget these things. We forget how great God is. We forget how powerful he is. We
forget how loving he is. When we don’t get what we want, we get angry at him. We feel that he doesn’t love us, or
he doesn’t know how to make us happy. Worse, we sometimes feel he has no power
over our concerns, we think that God doesn’t have power over the natural things
in life, over the things logic tells us are not possible. Sometimes we get
worried about worldly things and don’t know if God can and will help us. We
forget how powerful he is, and we forget that he always has his eyes on us.
Yes, his eye is always on you.
May we always remember how
powerful God is, and how he loves us, knows everything about us, and always has
his eyes on us. And may it lead us to remember how little we are in this
universe, yet in God's infinite goodness, loves us so much.
Do I sometimes forget what
great things God has done? Do I sometimes belittle his power or his love for
me? How has he made his love alive in my life? What great things has he done
that I take for granted? What can I do to always be reminded of his power and
love for me?
Father God,
Thank you for
today. Thank you for another day to live. Thank you for the reminder. Thank you
for loving me, an unworthy and little person. Lord, you don’t need to love me.
I don’t make your being God mightier or greater. You don’t need me Lord, but
you love me just because you are love. In fact, it is I who need you. I know
that I am nothing without you, that I cannot accomplish anything without you.
Sorry for the times I forget this. Sorry for not trusting in you enough. Sorry
for feeling entitled to receive blessings from you. Help me remember who you
are and who I am, especially without you. May I always remember to stay close
to you and trust that you always have the best plan for me, and that with you,
nothing is impossible. Amen.
Blessed
day!
In
Christ,
-g-
September 28, 2016
Lectionary: 457
Wednesday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time
Reading 1 Jb 9:1-12, 14-16
Job answered his friends and said:
I know well that it is so;
but how can a man be justified before God?
Should one wish to contend with him,
he could not answer him once in a thousand times.
God is wise in heart and mighty in strength;
who has withstood him and remained unscathed?
He removes the mountains before they know it;
he overturns them in his anger.
He shakes the earth out of its place,
and the pillars beneath it tremble.
He commands the sun, and it rises not;
he seals up the stars.
He alone stretches out the heavens
and treads upon the crests of the sea.
He made the Bear and Orion,
the Pleiades and the constellations of the south;
He does great things past finding out,
marvelous things beyond reckoning.
Should he come near me, I see him not;
should he pass by, I am not aware of him;
Should he seize me forcibly, who can say him nay?
Who can say to him, “What are you doing?”
How much less shall I give him any answer,
or choose out arguments against him!
Even though I were right, I could not answer him,
but should rather beg for what was due me.
If I appealed to him and he answered my call,
I could not believe that he would hearken to my words.
I know well that it is so;
but how can a man be justified before God?
Should one wish to contend with him,
he could not answer him once in a thousand times.
God is wise in heart and mighty in strength;
who has withstood him and remained unscathed?
He removes the mountains before they know it;
he overturns them in his anger.
He shakes the earth out of its place,
and the pillars beneath it tremble.
He commands the sun, and it rises not;
he seals up the stars.
He alone stretches out the heavens
and treads upon the crests of the sea.
He made the Bear and Orion,
the Pleiades and the constellations of the south;
He does great things past finding out,
marvelous things beyond reckoning.
Should he come near me, I see him not;
should he pass by, I am not aware of him;
Should he seize me forcibly, who can say him nay?
Who can say to him, “What are you doing?”
How much less shall I give him any answer,
or choose out arguments against him!
Even though I were right, I could not answer him,
but should rather beg for what was due me.
If I appealed to him and he answered my call,
I could not believe that he would hearken to my words.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 88:10bc-11, 12-13, 14-15
R. (3) Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
Daily I call upon you, O LORD;
to you I stretch out my hands.
Will you work wonders for the dead?
Will the shades arise to give you thanks?
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
Do they declare your mercy in the grave,
your faithfulness among those who have perished?
Are your wonders made known in the darkness,
or your justice in the land of oblivion?
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
But I, O LORD, cry out to you;
with my morning prayer I wait upon you.
Why, O LORD, do you reject me;
why hide from me your face?
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
Daily I call upon you, O LORD;
to you I stretch out my hands.
Will you work wonders for the dead?
Will the shades arise to give you thanks?
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
Do they declare your mercy in the grave,
your faithfulness among those who have perished?
Are your wonders made known in the darkness,
or your justice in the land of oblivion?
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
But I, O LORD, cry out to you;
with my morning prayer I wait upon you.
Why, O LORD, do you reject me;
why hide from me your face?
R. Let my prayer come before you, Lord.
Alleluia Phil 3:8-9
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I consider all things so much rubbish
that I may gain Christ and be found in him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
As Jesus and his disciples were proceeding
on their journey, someone said to him,
“I will follow you wherever you go.”
Jesus answered him,
“Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.”
And to another he said, “Follow me.”
But he replied, “Lord, let me go first and bury my father.”
But he answered him, “Let the dead bury their dead.
But you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God.”
And another said, “I will follow you, Lord,
but first let me say farewell to my family at home.”
Jesus answered him, “No one who sets a hand to the plow
and looks to what was left behind is fit for the Kingdom of God.”
I consider all things so much rubbish
that I may gain Christ and be found in him.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Lk 9:57-62
on their journey, someone said to him,
“I will follow you wherever you go.”
Jesus answered him,
“Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.”
And to another he said, “Follow me.”
But he replied, “Lord, let me go first and bury my father.”
But he answered him, “Let the dead bury their dead.
But you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God.”
And another said, “I will follow you, Lord,
but first let me say farewell to my family at home.”
Jesus answered him, “No one who sets a hand to the plow
and looks to what was left behind is fit for the Kingdom of God.”
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