Have you ever wondered why you are unable to grow in your spiritual life? One reason is because some of us are still clinging on to other things or persons, which we are reluctant to let go. These things and persons may be our wealth, riches, titles, popularity, fame, or even loved ones, but when we cling on and focus on these other things, we are actually being burdened by them, for we fear that if we do not pay attention to them, we worry that they may be lost or stolen.
In today’s Gospel, “Jesus said to his disciples, ‘I tell you solemnly, it will be hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. Yes, I tell you again, it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven.’ When the disciples heard this they were astonished. ‘Who can be saved, then?’ they said. Jesus gazed at them. ‘For men’ he told them ‘this is impossible; for God everything is possible.'” The eye of a needle is a door which is shaped in such a way that a camel or any person carrying or clinging to too many things would not be able to pass through. It is only when the things are removed that one could pass through easily.
In the same way, each of us may be finding it difficult to pass through our very own “eye of a needle” to become closer to God. Our deeds and our sins may have become quite numerous; burdening and bogging us down, making it quite difficult or even impossible for us to move on. It is only when we have unloaded or removed such burdens that we would then be able to move closer to God. The question is: are we so fearful or proud to remove such burdens, or are we willing to let go and let God be our guide? God is beckoning us to come to Him so that He can care for us, it is up to us to discard that which is temporary, so that we may attain that which is for all eternity.