Friday, March 13, 2020

Keep Dreamig


The WORD today reminds me to keep dreaming despite what is happening at the moment.

One of the tagline or marketing campaign I really like is Johnnie Walker's - Keep Walking. Work hard and persevere. No matter what happens, no matter what life throws at you, keep walking. Keep working hard. Persevere. And you'll be in a better place. And you'll eventually get there. This is similar to what Joseph did in his life.

We should keep dreaming, no matter what happens to us.

In the first reading, we see what happened to Joseph at a young age. He was their father's favorite, so he was not popular with his brothers. They wanted to kill him, but eventually sold him as a slave. He experienced a lot of challenges even after that. A lot. But he never lost hope. He never let go of his faith in God. He never stopped dreaming. And he continued to be faithful to God.

The psalmist reminds us what happens. Fast forward, we saw that Joseph who was sold as a slave was able to help not only his family, but his whole nation. Since he did not lose his faith, God used him mightily to save a lot of people, and to show the saving power and merciful love of God - no matter what you went through.

God wants us to keep walking. To keep dreaming. Keep trusting God. No matter what challenges we encounter, no matter how unfair life is, no matter how much we want to give up. God is watching. And God is faithful. We just need to trust in Him. We just need to be faithful and persevere. And God will eventually reward us.

What are my problems right now? What are the seemingly show stoppers or heavy problems in my life? What do I do about it? Do I let those problems stop me, or do I persevere in faith?

May we be inspired by Joseph who kept his faith in God, and allowed himself to be used by God mightily. May it lead us to trust in God, to persevere, and to allow God to use us.

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, I am sorry for the times I feel like giving up. Sorry for the times I actually did. Sorry for not trusting in you enough. Lord, I ask that you help me be like Joseph. Help me never to give up, but instead keep on walking. Keep on dreaming. And I have faith that one day you will use me mightily, and things will make sense. Amen. 



Blessed Day!



In Christ,

-g-



Ps

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March 13 2020



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Friday of the Second Week of Lent
Lectionary: 234


Israel loved Joseph best of all his sons,
for he was the child of his old age;
and he had made him a long tunic.
When his brothers saw that their father loved him best of all his sons,
they hated him so much that they would not even greet him.

One day, when his brothers had gone
to pasture their father’s flocks at Shechem,
Israel said to Joseph,
“Your brothers, you know, are tending our flocks at Shechem.
Get ready; I will send you to them.”

So Joseph went after his brothers and caught up with them in Dothan.
They noticed him from a distance,
and before he came up to them, they plotted to kill him.
They said to one another: “Here comes that master dreamer!
Come on, let us kill him and throw him into one of the cisterns here;
we could say that a wild beast devoured him.
We shall then see what comes of his dreams.”

When Reuben heard this,
he tried to save him from their hands, saying,
“We must not take his life.
Instead of shedding blood,” he continued,
“just throw him into that cistern there in the desert;
but do not kill him outright.”
His purpose was to rescue him from their hands
and return him to his father.
So when Joseph came up to them,
they stripped him of the long tunic he had on;
then they took him and threw him into the cistern,
which was empty and dry.

They then sat down to their meal.
Looking up, they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead,
their camels laden with gum, balm and resin
to be taken down to Egypt.
Judah said to his brothers:
“What is to be gained by killing our brother and concealing his blood?
Rather, let us sell him to these Ishmaelites,
instead of doing away with him ourselves.
After all, he is our brother, our own flesh.”
His brothers agreed.
They sold Joseph to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver.

Responsorial Psalm PS 105:16-17, 18-19, 20-21

R. (5a) Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
When the LORD called down a famine on the land
and ruined the crop that sustained them,
He sent a man before them,
Joseph, sold as a slave.
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
They had weighed him down with fetters,
and he was bound with chains,
Till his prediction came to pass
and the word of the LORD proved him true.
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done.
The king sent and released him,
the ruler of the peoples set him free.
He made him lord of his house
and ruler of all his possessions.
R. Remember the marvels the Lord has done

Verse Before The Gospel JN 3:16

God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son;
so that everyone who believes in him might have eternal life.


Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people:
“Hear another parable.
There was a landowner who planted a vineyard,
put a hedge around it,
dug a wine press in it, and built a tower.
Then he leased it to tenants and went on a journey.
When vintage time drew near,
he sent his servants to the tenants to obtain his produce.
But the tenants seized the servants and one they beat,
another they killed, and a third they stoned.
Again he sent other servants, more numerous than the first ones,
but they treated them in the same way.
Finally, he sent his son to them,
thinking, ‘They will respect my son.’
But when the tenants saw the son, they said to one another,
‘This is the heir.
Come, let us kill him and acquire his inheritance.’
They seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him.
What will the owner of the vineyard do to those tenants when he comes?”
They answered him,
AHe will put those wretched men to a wretched death
and lease his vineyard to other tenants
who will give him the produce at the proper times.”
Jesus said to them, ADid you never read in the Scriptures:

The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone;
by the Lord has this been done,
and it is wonderful in our eyes?

Therefore, I say to you,
the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you
and given to a people that will produce its fruit.”
When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables,
they knew that he was speaking about them.
And although they were attempting to arrest him,
they feared the crowds, for they regarded him as a prophet.


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