Faithfulness and Love

Category Archives: 21st

Wednesday of Week 21 Year 2

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Have you ever been lazy in your life? Some could be lazy in doing house work, and this could result in an unkempt appearance or a messy house, which then could attract unwanted creatures such as rats, mice, snakes, cockroaches, centipedes and other nasties. Some could be lazy in office work, and this could cause one to fall behind in their deadlines and workloads, and could even lead to one losing his or her job. Some could even be lazy in caring for their health, thinking that one is in the pink of health, and this could lead to serious complications later in life, and could even lead to an untimely death. Laziness can come in many forms, but it is laziness in our prayer life, in our spiritual life and in our relationship with God which we need to watch out for.

In today’s reading, St Paul cautions us: “In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we urge you, brothers, to keep away from any of the brothers who refuses to work or to live according to the tradition we passed on to you. You know how you are supposed to imitate us: now we were not idle when we were with you…”

When we are lazy or idle, we begin to neglect many things, including our spiritual life. We think that we are fine, but the truth is we are not that fine. We sometimes hear the saying: “an idle mind is a devil’s workshop.” When one has too much time in one’s hands, is lazy and does not utilise the time properly, one could begin to waste time doing frivolous or unnecessary things, some of which could lead one to commit even more serious sins. Are we guilty of being lazy or idle? Are we using time wisely? Do we realise the consequences of being lazy?

Saturday of Week 21 Year 1

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God has given us gifts, talents and capabilities, and such gifts, talents and capabilities are meant to be put to good use, especially to glorify God. But are we putting such gifts, talents and capabilities to good use, or have we become lazy and let our gifts, talents or capabilities go to waste, even to the point of one day losing such gifts, talents or capabilities, as a result of neglect or lack of practice?

In today’s gospel, the servant who buried his one talent in the ground was called “wicked and lazy” by his master.For some, the master seemed rather harsh with his words and in his treatment of that servant, but we must remember that the servant had been given the one talent not for him to do as he pleases or to boost his ego, but to benefit the master. Since the servant chose not to be bothered about what his master expected, he suffered the consequences.

What about us? Are we putting our gifts, talents or capabilities to good use for the glory of God? Let us not end up like that “wicked and lazy” servant, and end up being “thrown into the dark, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.”

Tuesday of Week 21 Year 1

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As Christians, we are commanded to go forth and preach the Good News. But when we go and preach the Good News, what is our true purpose or agenda in doing so? Are we doing it for the greater glory of God, or are we doing it for our personal gratification or personal gain, and to boost our reputation and ego?

In today’s reading, St. Paul reminds the Thessalonians and us: “We have not taken to preaching because we are deluded, or immoral, or trying to deceive anyone; it was God who decided that we were fit to be entrusted with the Good News, and when we are speaking, we are not trying to please men but God, who can read our inmost thoughts.”

What does this mean to us? It means that we need to check our motives and see whether we are truly preaching the Good News with right motive, right intention and right disposition. May we go forth and preach the Good News, with humility and joy, not for ourselves or to show how capable or great we are, but for the greater glory of God.

Monday of Week 21 Year 1

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What sort of lives are we living as Christians? Do we walk the talk and practice what we preach? Or do we merely utter words and lord it over others, and expect others to do as we say but not do as we do? When we merely say things without showing example, then we may be hypocrites like the scribes and Pharisees in today’s Gospel, who Jesus condemned with harsh words: “Alas for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You who shut up the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces, neither going in yourselves nor allowing others to go in who want to. Alas for you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You who travel over sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when you have him you make him twice as fit for hell as you are.”

So what does this mean to us? It means that we should be careful of our words and actions. May we not end up as hypocrites like the scribes and Pharisees, easy to say lots of things or make comments, but unwilling to take ownership of what we say and practice what we tell others to do. Word are cheap and meaningless, unless we are willing to walk the talk and show good example.

Saturday of Week 21 Year 2

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One reality in life is that, for most of us, we come to this world and go from this world without the rest of the world ever noticing us. Not many of us can become rich, popular, powerful or famous; and even if we do become rich, popular, powerful or famous, such things are only temporary. Though we try to make a name for ourselves, to desire for attention, to bask in the limelight or to be just famous and popular; all these things will one day wane or be lost.

In today’s reading, we are challenged with a question: what is there to boast about? The reading reminds us: “it was to shame the wise that God chose what is foolish by human reckoning, and to shame what is strong that he chose what is weak by human reckoning; those whom the world thinks common and contemptible are the ones that God has chosen – those who are nothing at all to show up those who are everything. The human race has nothing to boast about to God… As scripture says: if anyone wants to boast, let him boast about the Lord.”

What does this mean to us? It means we must never allow ourselves to be seduced by riches, popularity, power or fame, and become proud, egoistic and conceited, since all these things won’t last. God could take these things away from us just as easily as these things were given to us. How we stand before people is not as important as how we stand before God. May we learn to remain humble and docile, and for whatever good we do, let us give thanks and praise the Lord.

Monday of Week 21 Year 2

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What is the difference between hurting someone and harming someone? Some of us think that there is no difference and the two mean the same thing, but actually, there is a difference between the two. For example, if a person stabs you at your abdomen with a knife, then that person not only hurts you but also harms you; but if a surgeon is handling that knife, then it might hurt you, especially when you wake up from anaesthesia, but it will not harm you. In our spiritual growth, telling someone a hard truth with the intention of fraternal correction might hurt that someone, but will not harm him or her, and it would actually be helping that someone.

In today’s Gospel, we hear Jesus calling the scribes and Pharisees hypocrites and blind. Was Jesus hurting them? Surely. Was he harming them? Not at all. Jesus was actually giving the scribes and Pharisees a shock treatment, with hope that they may see the error of their ways and repent. But did the scribes and Pharisees get Jesus’ point and change their ways? No, because they had become so obstinate, proud and conceited, so much so that they had become indifferent and oblivious to the hurt.

When we become indifferent and oblivious to the hurt like the scribes and Pharisees, we may actually be harming ourselves. How so? We may be harming ourselves spiritually, and slowly drift away from God’s ways and end up doing our own thing. May we take notice of the hurt we experience in our spiritual journey, and let God transform us for our spiritual good.

Saturday of Week 21 Year 1

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When God gives us certain gifts, talents and capabilities, such gifts, talents and capabilities are meant to be put to good use, especially to glorify God. But what happens to some is that they begin to think that such gifts, talents and capabilities are for themselves to use for their own benefit and glory. Some even become lazy and let their gifts, talents or capabilities go to waste, even to the point of one day losing such gifts, talents or capabilities, as a result of neglect or lack of practice. Are some of us guilty of reserving such gifts, talents or capabilities only for ourselves?

In today’s gospel, the servant who buried his one talent in the ground was called “wicked and lazy” by his master. Some may think that the master seemed rather harsh with his words and in his treatment of that servant, but we must remember that the master had given the servant the one talent not for him to do as he pleases, but to benefit the master. Instead, the servant chose not to be bothered about what his master expected, and as a result, he suffered the consequences.

What about us? Are we putting our gifts, talents or capabilities to good use for the glory of God? Or have we become complacent or not bothered? Let us not end up like that “wicked and lazy” servant, losing our relationship with God due to our attitude and neglect, and end up being “thrown into the dark, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth.”

Friday of Week 21 Year 1

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For many of us, our lives are often filled with hectic schedules and we are busy most of the time. We seem to think that to do well or succeed in life, one has to work hard and play hard. But the irony is that sometimes, playing too hard and working too hard leads to stress, and we may end up in worse shape than before. Also, when we play too hard and work too hard, we may neglect in other areas in our lives, such as our relationships with others, our health, or even our relationship with God. What happens when we neglect something? We will face the consequences of our neglect later on, and by then it may be too late.

In today’s Gospel, we come across ten bridesmaids: five were foolish, five were sensible. All ten were supposed to meet the bridegroom, but the foolish ones only brought their lamps without bringing extra oil, whereas the sensible ones brought both. The bridegroom was late and the lamps of the foolish bridesmaids were running out of oil. So these foolish bridesmaids had to go and buy more oil, and in their absence, the bridegroom came. As a result, the foolish bridesmaids ended up being locked out of the wedding hall.

Have some of us become like the foolish bridesmaids who ended up being locked out? Have we neglected our relationship with God until it is too late? God has given plenty of chances for us to grow closer to Him, and it is up to us to be sensible enough to do our part. So let us not procrastinate any more but stay awake, because we do not know either the day or the hour.

Thursday of Week 21 Year 1

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As children, many of us would have been told to excel in life. We would be reminded to study hard, get good grades, get into a prestigeous university and graduate, and then get a good job, so that we could make living and live comfortable lives. Some of us may have chosen to become entrepreneurs or even start a business, with hope of becoming a success. All these efforts are good, but how many of us are ready to meet the Lord, should He call you now?

In today’s Gospel, Jesus is cautioning us: “Therefore, you too must stand ready because the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” While it is necessary for us to grow and prosper in the world, we should also not neglect our spiritual life. All our achievements and successes in the world are only temporary, but what happens to us when we die is just as important. Our bodies will return to the earth, but our soul will live on. Is our soul in good shape and ready to meet the Lord? Have we been making effort to remain in good relationship with God? Let us not find ourselves “weeping and grinding of teeth” due to our neglect.

Wednesday of Week 21 Year 1

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We sometimes hear the saying: “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” What that basically means is that one should not jump into conclusions about persons, without carefully evaluating them for a while. When we observe a person, especially when we do not know the person at all, or know very little about the person, we could be tricked or fooled into thinking that the person is friendly, good, prayerful or holy. But if we were to take time to observe a person for a while, we may soon discover that the person is not quite what he or she seems..

In today’s Gospel, we are once again reminded with an example of why we should not judge a book by its cover. The scribes and the Pharisees were being condemned by Jesus, because of their attitude, behaviour, the amount of pretense at the way they portrayed themselves, and much more. The scribes and the Pharisees chose to obstinately remain as they are, and throughout the Gospel, we can clearly see what sort of people they have become, even though Jesus had many times reminded them of their hypocrisy and tried to help them change.

What about us? Have some of us fallen into the same trap as the scribes and the Pharisees, when we choose to remain stubborn and prefer to do things our way, while lording it over others? Or are we willing to let Jesus change us into something better?