Faithfulness and Love

Monthly Archives: April 2014

Thursday of the 5th Week of Easter

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Being a Christian in this world is not easy. On the one hand, we want to succeed and prosper. On the other hand, we are reminded time and time again to keep God’s commandments. Sometimes the things we are asked to perform in the world may be in conflict with God’s commandments. If we choose to perform the task, we would be breaking a commandment of God. If we choose not to perform the task, we may lose our status, our popularity, our financial security, our prosperity, and even our lives. If faced with such a situation, what would you do?

In today’s Gospel, Jesus said to his disciples: “Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my own joy may be in you and your joy be complete.” What do we want? Eternal joy or eternal sadness? The joy we experience in this world is only temporary. After a while, we would need to find other ways and means to remain joyful. In fact, we may never attain complete joy. However, Jesus is offering a kind of joy which is complete. We can receive this joy which He offers us if we keep God’s commandments and remain in His love. If that is so, why do we still stubbornly insist in seeking temporary things of this world while slacking in seeking eternal things out of this world? Don’t we value and want the joy Jesus offers us?

Wednesday of the 5th Week of Easter

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Are we part of Jesus’ vine? Or have we drifted away from Him. Some of us think that we are part of Jesus’ vine, but the reality is that some of us have chosen to be apart from Him, or we have drifted away from Him due to our neglect, or due to our attitudes and behaviour. In today’s Gospel, Jesus reminds us: “Whoever remains in me, with me in him, bears fruit in plenty; for cut off from me you can do nothing.” We may appear to be doing good or charitable things, but we could still be apart from Jesus. We could appear to be respectable people, but we could still be cut off from Jesus. How so? By looking at the fruits and motivation of what we are doing and why we are doing such things. Some of us are doing things for our own glory or for our own personal gratification, under the pretence of appearing helpful, respectable, good or charitable.

Ultimately, whether we are remaining in Christ or otherwise can be summed up in what Jesus tells us: “It is to the glory of my Father that you should bear much fruit, and then you will be my disciples.” The glory is to God, not to ourselves. The question is: are we really remaining in Jesus?

Tuesday of the 5th Week of Easter

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Suffering and hardship are some of the many things we may experience as Christians. Some of us may not necessarily experience major suffering or hardship in our lifetime, but we may experience some sort of suffering and hardship, especially in countries where Christians are persecuted or mistreated. Some countries may not necessarily cause suffering and hardship explicitly or directly, but through various subtle ways and means, Christians in those countries may still experience suffering and hardship.

In today’s reading, Paul and Barnabas “put fresh heart into the disciples, encouraging them to persevere in the faith. ‘We all have to experience many hardships’ they said ‘before we enter the kingdom of God.’” Despite the many difficulties, sufferings and hardship we may face, are we willing to persevere in the faith as Paul and Barnabas encouraged all of us to do so? It is tempting and seems easy to just run away or abandon our faith. But let us not lose heart; let us remain strong and hopeful for God will care for us.

Monday of the 5th Week of Easter

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Are we all the same? Some of us think that we are better or smarter than others, and we differentiate among ourselves according to status, rank, the amount of wealth we have, etc. When we go to a function or to a store, do we see equal treatment? More often than not, we see those who are in power or who have influence or wealth receiving special or VIP treatment. However, when we go down to the basics, aren’t we all the same?

Today’s reading tells us that “when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard what was happening they tore their clothes, and rushed into the crowd, shouting, ‘Friends, what do you think you are doing? We are only human beings like you…'” Barnabas and Paul shows us that, despite all the wealth, power, capabilities, intellect, etc. we may have, ultimately we are only human beings. All that we have, all that we are, all that we value here on earth are only temporary and there will come a time when we could lose all these, especially when we die. Thus, shouldn’t we be focusing more of what is permanent or eternal?

5th Sunday of Easter Year A

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What is more important to our spiritual growth? Action? Prayer? Some of us may think that we need to do something for our spiritual growth. We get involved with all sorts of activities, we do charity here and there, we get into different aspects of church life. Over time, we become more and more preoccupied with doing things. We begin to think that our spiritual growth is tied to the amount of things we are capable of doing, as well as the number of activities we are involved or have been involved in.

However, is action more important or the only thing that matters? Would we be branded as useless or hopeless if we do not get involved so much? In our busyness and running around doing things, we become less and less hardworking in our prayer life. We neglect our conversations with God and begin to find it more and more challenging keeping still. After all, we are so used to activities, things going on around us, that we may have failed to listen to the promptings of God within us.

St. Peter in the second reading reminds us that we are “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a consecrated nation, a people set apart to sing the praises of God who called us out of darkness into his wonderful light.” Here, we are reminded to give praise to God through our words and actions. In the first reading, seven deacons were appointed to help in the distribution of goods so that the apostles “can continue to devote themselves to prayer and to the service of the word.” When we look at these readings, we can begin to realise that we need to look carefully at our prayer life. Our actions must flow from our prayers and praying helps us to remain focused on God. Prayer reminds us that we are doing God’s work and not our own. Prayer reminds us that ultimately, God is in control.

Jesus tells his disciples at the beginning of today’s gospel: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God and trust in me.” When we trust in God and in Jesus, we begin to realise that we cannot do everything. We realise that we are not superman or superwoman, and there are certain things and certain situations which we need to let God take care. When we pray, we are not saying that we are incompetent or incapable, but we are aware of our limitations and we trust that God, who is limitless, will do what is best for us and for the situation.

Today, let us increase our efforts in prayer and reflection. Let us let God be God and trust in Him, knowing that He will take care of things. Let us listen to His voice, and let Him take control. Let us remember that we can never do it alone, as all things are possible only with God.

Housekeeping – 4th Week of Easter

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For your easy reference, the following is a list of weeks and years with their corresponding date:

11 May 2014 – 4th Sunday of Easter Year A
12 May 2014 – Monday of the 4th Week of Easter
13 May 2014 – Tuesday of the 4th Week of Easter
14 May 2014 – Saint Matthias, Apostle – Feast
15 May 2014 – Thursday of the 4th Week of Easter
16 May 2014 – Friday of the 4th Week of Easter

Friday of the 4th Week of Easter

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How much do we trust God? How much do we trust Jesus? We say we trust, but sometimes some of us resort to other ways to get what we want or to reassure or comfort us. Some of us go for feng shui, bomohs, shamans, medicine men, astrologers, etc., thinking that perhaps these may be able to help us, only to be disappointed later or we may end up worse than we initially were.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus reassures us: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God still, and trust in me.” No matter how difficult or challenging the situation, Jesus can help us. We may not get the sort of help we expect or we may not get the help so quickly, but we will be helped according to what is best for us, since sometimes what we expect is not necessarily suitable or helpful. The question is: are we willing to let God take care of things, or are we always trying to be in control?

Thursday of the 4th Week of Easter

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Are we doing our own thing, or are we doing God’s thing? Are we building our own kingdom, or are we building God’s Kingdom? Sometimes we may be doing things which may appear to glorify God, but in reality we are doing such things for our own benefit or to glorify ourselves. Today’s Gospel reminds us of who we ought to be: “I tell you most solemnly, no servant is greater than his master, no messenger is greater than the man who sent him. Now that you know this, happiness will be yours if you behave accordingly.”

Sometimes in our lives, we may be behaving more like the master than the servant. When we treat others with contempt; when we lord it over others; when we think we are smarter, wiser or superior compared to others; when we misuse our authority; when we are biased towards certain people; then we may be doing our own thing instead of truly and unreservedly glorifying God. Let us discern and discover who we are and ought to be; and behave accordingly to gain true happiness.

Saint Matthias, Apostle – Feast

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There are certain things that we do in church which require a certain amount of authority. For example, a church organisation such as the Liturgical Committee or RCIA team ought to have a chairperson or leader, so that the organisation would be properly represented in the church structure. If there are any matters concerning a particular organisation, the leader or chairperson would be informed, so that other members could also be informed.

This idea of proper authority and structure was also evident in ancient times. In today’s reading, we see how the apostles eventually appointed Matthias to replace Judas Iscariot: “We must therefore choose someone who has been with us the whole time that the Lord Jesus was travelling round with us, someone who was with us right from the time when John was baptising until the day when he was taken up from us – and he can act with us as a witness to his resurrection.”

Being an authority in church is certainly not easy, as one is called and chosen to be even more zealous in proclaiming the Good News. Notice here that one is not an authority through self-appointment. There is a danger that when a person is self-appointed, that person could be doing so for personal glory, personal gain, or personal gratification (syiok sendiri, as what some would say in Bahasa Malaysia).

In today’s reading, we see how a person is chosen to a position of authority. In the reading: “Having nominated two candidates, Joseph known as Barsabbas, whose surname was Justus, and Matthias, they prayed, ‘Lord, you can read everyone’s heart; show us therefore which of these two you have chosen to take over this ministry and apostolate, which Judas abandoned to go to his proper place.’ They then drew lots for them, and as the lot fell to Matthias, he was listed as one of the twelve apostles.”

Notice here in the reading:

  1. There is nomination: The candidates are nominated, not self-appointed.
  2. There is prayer: Prayer is necessary so that a wise decision is made
  3. There is drawing of lots: voting or undi is performed. We hope and pray that this is done fairly and after proper discernment, and not because the candidate is a friend or advantageous to certain persons.
  4. There is listing or acceptance: The person who has received the most number of votes fairly is then listed as the person of authority.

Thus, let us be mindful of how we choose persons to positions of authority. Let us properly discern and seek God’s help, so that those who are truly worthy to be in positions of authority are appointed. Such persons are appointed not to please others or for personal gain, but for the greater glory of God. May those among us chosen to be in positions of authority be continuously and consistently tireless in serving all and building God’s Kingdom.

Tuesday of the 4th Week of Easter

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Do we belong to Jesus? Are we the sheep that belong to Jesus? Sometimes our attitudes and behaviour towards others seems to show that we belong to an exclusive group and only members of our group are significant or important. But today’s Gospel reminds us, where Jesus said: “The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice; I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life; they will never be lost and no one will ever steal them from me.” Jesus did not say, “the sheep that belong to me from a particular group…” So, if this is the case, all of us can be part of the sheep that belong to Jesus. Even in today’s reading, we see how: “Some of them, however, who came from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch where they started preaching to the Greeks, proclaiming the Good News of the Lord Jesus to them as well. The Lord helped them, and a great number believed and were converted to the Lord.”

Seeing that all of us are in equal footing in being the sheep that belong to Jesus, we should examine ourselves. How are we treating others who are different from us? Do we behave as brothers and sisters in Christ, as one children of God? Do we care and help others, without favouring particular persons, groups, etc.? Are we working together in building God’s Kingdom?