Courage and Faith

The WORD today (see http://usccb.org/bible/readings/011118.cfm) reminds me how powerful courage and faith are. 

They say that if you want something so bad, you should be willing to do anything to have it. You should be willing to spend a lot of time improving yourself, getting better, studying, so you can be a step closer to getting what you want. We see this mindset in the leper. 

If you want something you never had, you have to be willing to do something you have never done. Great results do not come from mediocre actions. 

The gospel is a continuation of yesterday's. Jesus went to nearby villages to preach and drive out demons. So most probably, healing was not his main agenda. He probably must be walking or maybe even teaching when this leper came up to him and begged Jesus to heal him. Malakas ang loob. He had courage to walk up to Jesus, a very busy man and always with a lot of people, to beg for healing. He also probably broke some laws, since lepers were not supposed to mingle with others. He had courage. He wanted healing so bad that he really stepped out of his comfort zone for a shot at it. 

Aside from courage, he also had faith. Great faith. His faith was probably the foundation of his courage. Mahirap yung ginawa nya. He gave a lot of effort just to get a shot at being healed. But he did it because he had faith in Jesus. No matter what the world tells him to do, or not to do, he had faith that Jesus is greater. That Jesus is more powerful. That Jesus is loving. And he was not disappointed. 

We may be in the same situation as the leper. We may have problems. We may be in a tough situation. We may have concerns. We may feel we are at a disadvantage. However, we should act like the leper. We should have faith in Jesus. In his love. In his power. And we should have the courage to do things for Jesus, to step out of our comfort zone for him. And as we do this, we can be certain that we will be surprised. 

May we learn and be inspired to have faith in God, and have the courage to do things for Him. 

Father God,

Thank you for today. Thank you for another day to live. Thank you for another chance to love and serve you. Thank you for the reminder. Lord, sorry for being weak. Sorry for being too shy to a fault. Sorry for not being willing to step out of my comfort zone and do things for you. Help me be like the leper. Help me have that faith in you no matter what situation I may be in. Help me have the courage to do crazy things for you. May my actions show you how much I love you and how much I trust you. Amen. 

Blessed day!

In Christ,

-g-

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January 11, 2018

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Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 308

Reading 1 1 Sm 4:1-11

The Philistines gathered for an attack on Israel.
Israel went out to engage them in battle and camped at Ebenezer,
while the Philistines camped at Aphek.
The Philistines then drew up in battle formation against Israel.
After a fierce struggle Israel was defeated by the Philistines,
who slew about four thousand men on the battlefield.
When the troops retired to the camp, the elders of Israel said,
"Why has the LORD permitted us to be defeated today
by the Philistines?
Let us fetch the ark of the LORD from Shiloh
that it may go into battle among us
and save us from the grasp of our enemies."

So the people sent to Shiloh and brought from there
the ark of the LORD of hosts, who is enthroned upon the cherubim.
The two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were with the ark of God.
When the ark of the LORD arrived in the camp,
all Israel shouted so loudly that the earth resounded.
The Philistines, hearing the noise of shouting, asked,
"What can this loud shouting in the camp of the Hebrews mean?"
On learning that the ark of the LORD had come into the camp,
the Philistines were frightened.
They said, "Gods have come to their camp."
They said also, "Woe to us! This has never happened before. Woe to us!
Who can deliver us from the power of these mighty gods?
These are the gods that struck the Egyptians
with various plagues and with pestilence.
Take courage and be manly, Philistines;
otherwise you will become slaves to the Hebrews,
as they were your slaves.
So fight manfully!"
The Philistines fought and Israel was defeated;
every man fled to his own tent.
It was a disastrous defeat,
in which Israel lost thirty thousand foot soldiers.
The ark of God was captured,
and Eli's two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were among the dead.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 44:10-11, 14-15, 24-25

R. (27b) Redeem us, Lord, because of your mercy.
Yet now you have cast us off and put us in disgrace,
and you go not forth with our armies.
You have let us be driven back by our foes;
those who hated us plundered us at will.
R. Redeem us, Lord, because of your mercy.
You made us the reproach of our neighbors,
the mockery and the scorn of those around us.
You made us a byword among the nations,
a laughingstock among the peoples.
R. Redeem us, Lord, because of your mercy.
Why do you hide your face,
forgetting our woe and our oppression?
For our souls are bowed down to the dust,
our bodies are pressed to the earth.
R. Redeem us, Lord, because of your mercy.

Alleluia See Mt 4:23

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Jesus preached the Gospel of the Kingdom
and cured every disease among the people.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Mk 1:40-45

A leper came to him and kneeling down begged him and said,
"If you wish, you can make me clean."
Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand,
touched the leper, and said to him,
"I do will it. Be made clean."
The leprosy left him immediately, and he was made clean.
Then, warning him sternly, he dismissed him at once.
Then he said to him, "See that you tell no one anything,
but go, show yourself to the priest
and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed;
that will be proof for them."
The man went away and began to publicize the whole matter.
He spread the report abroad
so that it was impossible for Jesus to enter a town openly.
He remained outside in deserted places,
and people kept coming to him from everywhere.