He Speaks Through You

The WORD today (see http://usccb.org/bible/readings/071213.cfm) reminds me that God can speak through us.

In the gospel, we see Jesus assuring the apostles to not be afraid when faced with persecution in courts. He says the Holy Spirit will speak through them, so there’s no need to worry and to prepare how they are going to defend themselves and the Church. Inspiring and assuring, right?

However, sometimes this is taken in the wrong way. This does not mean we will not do anything anymore, and just leave it up to God and wait for his help. As the saying goes” Nasa Diyos ang awa, nasa tao ang gawa”

We need to work and do our part before God can come into our lives and help us out. In basketball, even if our desire is to glorify God, we can’t expect God to magically help us out and enable us to win games for him if we don’t even know how to dribble the ball and the basic rules of the games. If we don’t have the basic skills, how can he help us? Same with faith, if the disciples were not doing God’s work and do not have a personal and intimate relationship with God, how can he help them? How can they hear his voice?

Yes, God never fails to help us. He assures us he will always be there, and tells us not to worry. But with it comes our responsibility to know him more and build a personal and intimate relationship with him, else, he cannot do as much for us.

Father God,

Thank you for today. thank you for giving me another day to live. Thank you that it’s Friday already! Lord, I pray that you help me build a personal and intimate relationship with you. May I work on it, have the basics and do my part to improve it, so that I can be more confident that when you help me, when you come to my aid, when you speak to me, I can hear your voice and you can speak through me. Amen.

Blessed day!

In Christ,

-g-

Free

The  WORD today (See http://usccb.org/bible/readings/071113.cfm) inspires me to live a life free from hurts, anger and revenge.

It is inspiring how Joseph lived his life. Yes he went through a lot, started when his brothers sold him. Yet he remained faithful to God, not harbouring feelings of anger and hatred in his life. Then we see in the first reading a dramatic scene, when he, now a man in power, reveals himself to his brothers who once sold him (and even planned to kill him), who need his help. This is one of the usual situations in telenovelas and drama movies where the oppressed main character becomes successful and takes his or her revenge. Payback time. But not Joseph.

Wherever we go, it is easier to travel light, without baggage. Same goes in life. It is easy to go through life without baggage. While negative feelings or anger or revenge probably can be a source of motivation to others, it is not a good one. We should free our lives from these baggages and just surrender everything to God, knowing that whatever is happening in our lives has a purpose, and that his plans cannot be stopped by evil.

In the reading, Joseph knew he had a purpose. He experienced hardships in life to prepare him for his current role -  to save lives. He was sent to work for God, like the disciples in the gospel. God's plans for him was unchanged by the evil around Joseph. As long as he is faithful, God's plans will still come to fulfilment.

May we be inspired to live a life free from hatred, hurts, anger and revenge, having faith that God's great plans for us cannot be stopped by evil... We just have to be faithful to Him.

Father God,

Thank you for today. Thank you for your word. Thank you for reminding me how powerful you are. Help me live a life free from baggages, and just trust in you and your plans for me. Thank you that all the evil in this world is powerless to stop your plans for me, I just have to always be faithful to you... Help me be so. Amen.

Blessed day!

In Christ,

-g-

Time to Work

The WORD today (See http://usccb.org/bible/readings/071013.cfm) reminds me that after receiving our nourishment, we will be called to work for God

Last week we saw that there is a time for everything, that when Jesus was with them, they were being nourished and did not fast. They were getting a lot, because God is preparing them for the task at hand.

And today, we see that time coming, we see Jesus telling them to work for his kingdom.

In life, we need balance. We need to receive and give. We received and experienced God's love first, that’s why we are able to love others. We receive nourishment, but we should also give service. It’s not healthy to just receive and receive and just keep everything. God's love and blessings should not end in us. Same things with giving, we should not just give and serve, but also receive nourishment and proper rest as we do so.

May we be reminded to receive nourishment from God to enable us to work for Him.

Father God,

Thank you for today. Thank you for knowing me and taking care of me. Thank you for nourishing me and filling me. Thank you because it enables me to serve you, work for you and build your kingdom. Lord, may I always have a willing heart to work for you and serve you so in my own little way, I can share to others the love and blessings I have been experiencing in my life. Amen.

Blessed day!

In Christ

-g-

Ps

See related reflection:

http://mysimplereflection.blogspot.com/2013/07/time-for-everything.html

Up to you

The WORD today (See http://usccb.org/bible/readings/070913.cfm) reminds me that it is always up to us how we would see things in this life.

There is a story of a farmer walking down the street in a small town when he came across a large stone in the middle of the road. He complained “Who is careless enough to leave a stone in the road? Why doesn’t someone remove this?.” Then we went away complaining.  A merchant also passed the road and went away complaining. Then a carpenter passed by the road as well. He got worried that someone may get hurt with the stone, so he decided to push it hard and managed to remove it from the road. Then he noticed a pieve of paper where the stone was which says – “Please bring this note to the palace, for the king wants to reward you for taking time to act instead of complainng about the obstacle on the road”

In the gospel, we see different kinds of people. We see people amazed at the power of Jesus to be able to drive away demons. On the other hand, we also see Pharisees whose hearts are hardened and was actually saying Jesus was a using the prince of demons to drive them out. Different people will react differently in one situation, and it is up to us to choose how we would react or what we would do.

In life, we experience a lot of things. God gives us a lot of both blessings and challenges. However, it is up to us how we would take it. We may opt to be like the people and believe in God’s power, appreciate God’s power and blessings, and like the carpenter, act to turn our challenges and roadblocks into opportunities. We can choose not to act like the Pharisees and have a hardened heart, not believing in Jesus’ powe and plans for our lives, and like the farmer, complaining about life’s challenges and difficulties instead of actually doing something about it.

How will you act today?

Father God,

Thank you for today. Thank you for another day to live my life and accomplish great things for you. Lord, I pray that I always be aware that it is my decision how I would act and how I would see things happening in my life. I pray that you help me be positive – to always see your goodness and love in my life, despite the challenges happening around me. And may I act and do something about these challenges, instead of just complaining. Amen.

Blessed day!

In Christ,

-g-

Unlimited

The WORD today (See http://usccb.org/bible/readings/070813.cfm) reminds me that God’s power and love is unlimited.

Nowadays, unlimited things are a hit. We have restaurants offering unlimited rice, unlimited yang chow, unlimited drinks and even unlimited food. We want to have a lot on our disposal, and we do not want to feel we are running out of food and other things. If you’re with a big group and there’s a limited amount of food, you should look out for yourself and get as much food you want and need, because if you don’t eventually it will run out and you won’t be satisfied… in contrast to eating in buffet, where you can take your time, knowing you will not run out of food to eat.

This is how God’s love and power is – unlimited.

In the readings today, we see how unlimited God’s love and power is. In the first reading, we see that God’s love and power is unlimited and never runs out, never expires. He promised Jacob that He will always be with him, until his promise would be fulfilled. It took time, but God was always with Jacob and kept his word. In the short gospel, we see two separate incidents of Jesus’ love and power. He cured the woman and brought to life the official’s daughter. His love and power does not get empty, or lose its effectiveness as he uses it. We should never be afraid to ask God, we should never think he has no time for us or no concern for our small problems, or no power for the big problems. His love and power is unlimited.  We just need to have faith, like the official, the woman, and Jacob – that God will keep his word and His power can work in our lives.

Being unlimited, we should also have the desire to share him to others. Even if other people pray and ask a lot from him, it doesn’t lessen his power and love. He will still have that same special attention to us, despite the number of people praying to him… so we should be generous and not keep God to ourselves.

Father God,

Thank you for today. Thank you for giving me another week. Lord, as I start the week, may I always be reminded that your love and power is unlimited, that it never ends. May I have faith in you, for I know you will keep your word, and will always be there for me. Lord, may I also have the desire to share you to others, knowing that like a candle’s light, sharing it doesn’t lessen its light, rather, sharing it brightens the environment more. Amen.

Blessed week!

In Christ,

-g-

Reward is Heaven

The WORD today (See http://usccb.org/bible/readings/070713.cfm) reminds me of the reward God gives to those who work for Him.

There is a saying that working for God doesn’t pay much, but the retirement package is out of this world. This is again reinforced in today’s gospel. Jesus sent them out to work for Him in this world, and upon coming back, they were happy because they felt God’s love, protection and power as they were working for him. Yes they experienced rewards of the world as well as they were doing God’s work, but Jesus reminded them that it’s not the best part, it’s not the best reward. What they should look forward to is the retirement reward – heaven!

Sometimes, we lose sight of heaven. We get distracted by what’s happening in the world, what we want to happen, and the rewards we have been getting. We lose sight of the retirement reward in store for us – if we work for it. We lose sight that life is not just here and now, that this is very short compared to eternity when we die. We forget to prepare for our final destination, which we want to be heaven.

May Jesus words remind us to make heaven our ultimate goal, and work in this world to prepare for it.

Father God,

Thank you for today. Thank you for another day to rest and spend time with people important to me. Lord, I pray that I may never lose sight of heaven. I pray that as I live my life here on earth, I may also work for you and prepare for eternity with you. May my goal not be anything in this world, but may it be to spend eternity with you in heaven. Amen.

Blessed day!

In Christ,

-g-

Time for Everything

The WORD today (See http://usccb.org/bible/readings/070613.cfm) reminds me that there is a time for everything.

In the gospel, Jesus is telling us that. While he is with the disciples, there’s no need to fast. They’re enjoying his company and maximizing the time they have with him. he was strengthening them and their faith so they would be able to do their task once he is taken to heaven. When that time comes, it will not be all fun. They will experience challenges and persecutions, and they would stand up to their faith.

In life, we experience the same thing. There is a time for everything. A time for laughter and fun, and a time to get serious. They say that the only permanent thing in life is change, and that is true. Things will never be always happy. Things will never be always sad and problematic. Life has its own seasons which will change in due time.

However, why do we sometimes feel that life is always difficult? Probably life is changing, we are just not acknowledging it. Maybe we’re too focused on the problems or challenges that we fail to see God’s blessings and rays of happiness He is sending us. It can also go the other way, we may feel always happy and at peace even if the world around us is chaotic – if we have that peace that comes from God.

Let us remember that there is a time for everything. If life is good, enjoy it, it will not be forever. IF life is challenging, bear with it, it will eventually improve.

Father God,

Thank you for today. thank you for another weekend. Lord, I pray that I always be reminded that there is a time for everything. May I always be reminded that challenges are not forever, that you will always send your blessings and that things will eventually improve. And as I do so, may I work on my faith and relationship with you, that no matter how challenging or problematic life may be, I may always have that joy and peace that can only come from you. Amen.

Blessed day!

In Christ,

-g-