Go Sit in the Lowest Place

 “Go sit in the lowest place...” Luke 14:10

I have to admit this is very hard for me to do. I like sitting where I have the best view and where I can hear what is happening well. That is why I usually come early. In Luke chapter 14, Jesus told a parable about a party where invited guests were picking places of honor at the tables. 

Jesus gives very practical advice, instructing, “When you are invited by someone at a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, lest someone more distinguished than you may have been invited. Then he who invited you both shall come and say to you, ‘Give place to this man’....When you are invited, go and recline at the last place...that he may say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher’”.

In the heavenly banquet, I can imagine Mother Teresa having a place of honor. She took care of the poorest of the poor, those who could not give her anything back, those who could not award her any medal, the voiceless, the powerless, those who counted for nothing at all in the world. She gave them value and showed them love. 

Ric Warren talks about the Mother Teresa Principle: “The more you care about the powerless, the more power you have. The more you serve those with no influence, the more influence God gives you. The more you humble yourself, the more you're honored by others.” Not many people believe this as shown by what is dominating the news today. All the billions stolen by government leaders and contractors as evidenced by the social media posts of their daughters and family members parading in thousand dollar dresses and bags and shoes and private jets. 

In contrast many saints gave away their riches, their positions, to serve others, like Saint Francis of Assisi, St. Anthony of Padua, and modern day Saint Katherine Drexel, who gave away more than $12 million dollars of her inheritance. They all have places of honor in the heavenly banquet. 

Father, teach me to be more loving, more humble, valuing what and whom You value. May I not feel entitled and self-important. May we learn from Your Son, Jesus, who was meek and humble of heart.

I’ve been making shrink plastic charms for a workshop I’m preparing. It’s a lot of fun! 

 Here’s something my 5 year old grandson made. He loves this activity! 

Well Done!

 ‘Master, you gave me five talents. See, I have made five more.’

His master said to him, 'Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters,I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master's joy.’ Matthew 25:20-21

Some people have great talent, groundbreaking ideas, amazing skills, and awesome gifts. Think Michelangelo who painted the Sistine Chapel even if he said he preferred to sculpt. And sculpt he did, creating the magnificent David and the beautiful Pieta. At 71 years old, when he thought his life was over, he was commissioned by Pope Paul III to be the chief architect of the St. Peter’s Basilica. Michelangelo, a self-taught architect, worked for 18 years to correct the engineering problems the former architects had created. I can imagine the Father saying to Michelangelo Buonarroti when he died at the age of 88 years of age, “Well done, good and faithful servant. With the gifts and talents I gave you, you have created masterpieces! Come share the Master’s joy!”  

What have we created with the gifts and talents God has showered upon us? Perhaps it is time to take stock of what we have done so far, and be more intentional for the future. We can have a goal, and plan little steps to reach it, so we can see our progress. And each day, we should be able to take one little step towards that aim. If we have plenty of gifts, God obviously expects more from us. 

When we use what God gives us, the natural consequence is sharing in the joy of our Father. It is the same joy He experienced when He made the earth, the skies, the land, waters, and animals. Each time He created something, He said, “It is good!” There is a saying, “Your dreams should be so big that without God they are impossible to achieve.” 

So let us try not to waste most of our time watching Netflix, flicking through Facebook, Tiktok or Instagram. Let us use the gifts our Father has so generously given us! Perhaps there is a book waiting to be written, a concerto ready to be composed, a scientific breakthrough just at your fingertips, a solution to a problem raring to be put into practice, a business that will change the world! Nothing is impossible with God!

Slave Not a King!

“When he heard him speak he was very much perplexed, yet he liked to listen to him.” Mark 6:20

It is written that King Herod liked to listened to John the Baptist, although he was greatly puzzled about what John said. What a greatly troubled man! He had John beheaded on the whim of a young girl whose dancing pleased him at a party! After she performed, King Herod promised, “Ask of me whatever you wish and I will grant it to you.” He swore, “I will grant you whatever you ask of me, even to half of my kingdom.” And the foolish girl, after following the advice of her even more foolish mother, asked for the head of John the Baptist! 

King Herod was deeply distressed at her request, but because of his oaths and all the guests at his party who heard it, he had John beheaded right there and then. The severed head of the prophet was put on a plate and presented to the daughter of Herodias. All this because John told the truth that it was unlawful, sinful, for Herod to have his brother’s wife, Herodias. 

We can see in this story that this so-called King is no King at all. He is a slave to his passions. He is captive to his many sins. He cannot even control his tongue, much less his desires of the flesh. John on the other hand, was imprisoned but he had the freedom to obey God, and say what had to be said. He had no fear for his life at all. John knew he was under no obligation to cater to the whims of the worldly rule of the king. John knew he was under only one authority, the King of kings and the Lord of lords. 

How about us, are we free or are we a slave like Herod? 

Stay Awake!

 “Stay awake therefore! You can not know the day your Lord is coming!" Matthew 24:42

I am imagining myself as a servant in a household. When the master is on vacation, would I be relaxed and not very diligent with my duties? If I was an employee and my boss was out on a series of meetings, would I join in the noise in the office, the horse play and loud bantering? In Matthew 24, Jesus warns against not being prepared for the day He comes again. Like the master of the household or the boss, Jesus will come when we least expect Him! It is best to be always prepared! 

We do not need to wait for His second coming with all the bells and whistles! Because if it is not the Lord's coming, death can easily come like a thief in the night! 

Can you imagine what happened when the Titanic was sinking and all was chaos, people scrambling to find life jackets, get into lifeboats, and frantically looking for loved ones? John Harper, a Scottish Baptist preacher, was one of those on the ship. After he secured a space for his sister and daughter on a lifeboat, he gave his life jacket to a man who was drowning. There, in the precious time he had left, he witnessed to the man about Jesus, urging him to believe, before succumbing to the frigid water and drowning. 

Five years later, when the survivors of that horrible accident got together, Aquilla Webb stood up and announced, “I was John Harper’s last convert.” We can see that John Harper was such a diligent and faithful servant up to the very end! 

Bring God’s Kingdom to Our Little Corner of the World

  "Make your lives worthy of the God who calls you to His Kingship and glory." 1 Thessalonians 2:12

I don't think we can ever be worthy of God, the King of the universe, the creator of everything visible and invisible. How could we ever make ourselves worthy as Saint Paul exhorts us to do? In the 1st chapter of his letter to the people of Thessalonica, he writes them, "We know that God loves you, dear brothers and sisters, and that He CHOSE you to be His own people."

Here in the Philippines, we never had a monarchy, a kingdom. We never had a King, so it's hard to imagine belonging to a Kingdom. But nevertheless, every Christian is part of a Kingdom, God's kingdom. We too, like the people of Thessalonica, were chosen, handpicked by God to be part of His own special people. 

It's hard to see God's Kingdom here on earth, especially when babies in the wombs are being killed so the fetus, placenta, and other membranes can be used in the development of certain vaccines and stem cell research. How about when Muslim families stone a daughter for converting to Christianity or a son for being gay? Today there are so many horrors like children being abused by their own fathers, or people being beheaded and hung upside down, etc. 

But God's Kingdom manages to break through- in people who serve, people who love, people who sacrifice their lives for others. After all, our God is a servant King, the King who saves. We see glimpses of God's kingdom in those who go to the prison regularly to bring not only real bread but the bread from heaven. We see it in any priest or lay person who goes out to mingle with the poor and give them dignity. We see it in young people visiting the Aetas in far off Pampanga to bring food and fix their ramshackle homes. We see God's Kingdom in those who tutor and feed street children, give them books and school supplies. We see the Kingdom shining in Africa's little Christian communities, in the underground churches in China, in the persecuted churches in the middle East. 

Lord, show us Your kingdom is all around us, and show us how we ourselves can bring Your Kingdom to our little corner of the world. 

A New Song

 "Sing to the Lord a new song..." Psalm 98:1

The Jews for most of their history have been exiled, persecuted, and have suffered greatly. But in spite of all the pressures of living in foreign lands, they have managed to maintain their language, culture, identity and spirit. When the temple was destroyed and Jerusalem pillaged, the focus of their worship transferred from the temple to their faith communities. That was when the Torah was rediscovered and read afresh.

I can say I also live in exile, in a foreign land. I am, after all, a citizen of heaven (Philippians 3:20). And like the Jews, with their songs of lamentation, I complain about this strange land I live in. The world as I know it is changing too fast, and I can't say it's for the better! The people whom we are asked to emulate by the media have no moral compass. Political leaders lie with audacity and have no compunction to steal from the hungry and the homeless. There are apps and sites that promote adultery, and people who are against abortion are insulted. Women sway boldly on red carpets in next to nothing! Unscrupulous people prey on the elderly and the unaware and steal their hard earned money with text scams. No, I do not feel like I belong!

Yet I can still sing new songs to the Lord! For His mercies are new every morning! And I know in every dark shadow, there is a light shining...even in the remotest region of the world! I just need to open my eyes to what God is doing. He keeps His promises, and I wait in faith, and journey with all the other pilgrims, to my promised land!

For the Lord Disciplines Whom He Loves

 “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor lose courage when you are punished by him. For the Lord disciplines him whom he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.” Hebrews 12:5–6 (RSVCE)

There is a well known anecdote about St. Teresa de Ávila taken from the 1912 translation by Alice Lady Lovat of the French “A Carmelite Nun”. On page 548, we can read-

In January of the last year of her life, 1582, St. Teresa left Ávila to establish convents in Burgos and Grenada, and this befell her along the way:

Teresa describes the journey thus: “We had to run many dangers. At no part of the road were the risks greater than within a few leagues of Burgos, at a place called Los Pontes. The rivers were so high that the water in places covered everything, neither road nor the smallest footpath could be seen, only water everywhere, and two abysses on each side. It seemed foolhardiness to advance, especially in a carriage, for if one strayed ever so little off the road (then invisible), one must have perished.” The saint is silent on her share of the adventure, but her companions relate that, seeing their alarm, she turned to them and encouraged them, saying that “as they were engaged in doing God’s work, how could they die in a better cause?” She then led the way on foot. The current was so strong that she lost her footing, and was on the point of being carried away when our Lord sustained her. “Oh, my Lord!” she exclaimed, with her usual loving familiarity, “when wilt Thou cease from scattering obstacles in our path?” “Do not complain, daughter,” the Divine Master answered, “for it is ever thus that I treat My friends.” “Ah, Lord, it is also on that account that Thou hast so few!” was her reply.

Isn’t the saint’s exchange with the Lord most amusing? But I am certain she found it not at all funny at the time! So it is with our trials, tribulations, challenges and tears. When one day we will look back, and we will see God’s mighty hand writ large in our life, it will be revealed how God was most present when life treated us the harshest. For it is then that He was working the most to bring us to heaven. 

We Become Like That Which We Love

 “You have but one master, the Christ. The greatest among you must be your servant.” Matthew 23:10-11

Usually, if we hang around with people who like eating out, we end up eating out a lot. If most of our friends visit the gym often, we inevitably buy exercise outfits and work out. Mannerisms, the way our friends talk, their attitudes rub off on us. I used to go out with some friends who cursed. Even if I was determined not to do so, sometimes I would catch myself saying a bad word. My mom heard me once say a word that was constantly repeated by this group, and almost washed my mouth out with soap!

It is also catching if we spend time with Jesus. We will be influenced by the way He prays, and loves, and serves others. Bishop Fulton Sheen wrote in his book, Life is Worth Living, that “We become like that which we love. If we love what is base, we become base; but if we love what is noble, we become noble.” 

I am part of a covenant Christian community. We are all different kinds of people. I doubt we would ever have met if not for community. One thing I know, we all love God and strive to love, serve, and encourage one another. Christ is our master, our leader, our friend. It is not a perfect community, but I know I am in the right group. We all need friends who will help us to become what God purposed us to be. 

Your God My God

 “Your people shall be my people, and your God my God.” Ruth 1:16

The Book of Ruth is so interesting and short, one can easily read it in one sitting. The first chapter is filled with hopelessness as we find Naomi and her husband Elimelech and their two sons leaving their home because of a severe famine. They settle in Moab, which showed their extreme desperation. Elimelech dies, and the two sons marry Moabite women. Alas! The two sons die as well, leaving three widows! In those days, women had no rights, widows had no defenders, no identities even. Naomi decides to go back to her homeland and she tells her daughters-in-law to return to their families for she cannot provide for them. After some persuasion and crying, one daughter-in-law obeys, but Ruth, the other, vows never to leave her. "Do not ask me to abandon you! Wherever you go, I will go, wherever you lodge, I will lodge, your people shall be my people, and your God my God."

We can assume that the witness of Naomi and her family to Ruth has been such that Ruth would elect to choose Naomi's way of life rather than the life she grew up with. She specifically embraces Naomi's people and Naomi's God. And because of this wonderful decision in the face of uncertainty, brokenness and hopelessness, Ruth is rewarded. In Naomi's hometown, she meets a worthy man who marries her and she becomes part of the lineage of Jesus Christ, one of the few women listed in the first chapter of Matthew. It is during challenging times that our choices reveal who we are. Trials show our true character and values. This gem of a story shows that God always has a plan, a bright future for those who choose Him!

Filthy Rags

 “My friend, how is it that you came in here without a wedding garment?” Matthew 22:12

We all enjoy weddings and when I get invited to a wedding, I usually plan way in advance what I will wear. Once I chose to wear a dull gold embroidered outfit made by a Japanese designer which I bought from the ukay-ukay. I thought that was a fitting wedding attire because I loved it! My sister however told me that no, on the contrary, it was not the right thing to wear for a semi-formal wedding because it was not long! I was dismayed thinking the bride may have thought the same! 

In the parable Jesus told the chief priests and elders, He said that the kingdom of heaven is like a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. The invited guests did not come so he instructed his servants, “The feast is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy to come. Go out, therefore, into the main roads and invite to the feast whomever you find.”

The servants did so and the hall was filled. But when the king came to meet the guests, he saw one man not in a wedding garment and he was thrown out. Isn’t that so unfair? 

One can ask, what does the King expect? His guests were invited off the street!!! It's amazing that there were not more people unfit to attend a wedding! But you see, it was a Middle Eastern custom for the King to provide the garments for his guests. They had only to put it on.

In Genesis, after Adam and Eve sinned and they discovered that they were naked, they covered themselves with fig leaves. God rejected this covering made by their own hands in the same way that God would reject anything we did to "clothe" ourselves. Instead in Genesis 3:21, God made a covering for Adam and Eve out of the skin of an animal. Perhaps that animal was a lamb, a spotless perfect lamb. God killed the lamb and took its skin to cover the sin, shame and guilt of Adam and Eve. In Romans 13:14, Saint Paul admonishes us to put on the Lord Jesus Christ, to clothe ourselves with Jesus. All of our righteousness, our good deeds are as filthy rags before God (Isaiah 64:6). Only putting on the righteousness of Christ will do if we want to have a place in the Wedding Feast of the King!

Abounding Grace

 “My friend, I am not cheating you. Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same as you? Or am I not free to do as I wish with my own money? Are you envious because I am generous? Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last.” Matthew 20:13-16

This bible passage, Matthew 20:1-16, is all about the mercy and generosity of God.

The laborers who came early complained that the master paid them the same wages as those whom he hired to work for the last hour. “These last ones worked only an hour, and you have made them equal to us, who bore the day's burden and the heat," grumbled the workers.

If, when we reach heaven, we see a corrupt government official there, or a celebrity who lived a promiscuous life, or an atheist who accepted Jesus on his deathbed, will we feel like the laborers in the vineyard? Will we feel cheated? Will we feel God was unfair? What for? For not giving value to the years we tried to do good, when we chose integrity instead of dishonesty? When in reality, we were free of the shackles of sin and shame! 

"My friend, I caused you no injury,” the master said. Yes, Jesus is free to be generous with the gift of eternal life. Whatever we do for Him it will not ever be enough to deserve a life in heaven with Him and the saints. And we should not feel cheated if we pursued a life with the Lord. There is abounding grace in a life well lived in partnership with our Maker whatever the cost.

Perfect

 “If you wish to be perfect..." Matthew 19:21 

The rich young man in Matthew 19 is nameless. He can be anyone who desires to be good. He asked Jesus, "Teacher, what good must I do to possess everlasting life?" Jesus answers that he must keep the commandments. He should not kill, commit adultery, steal, or lie. He should honor his parents and love his neighbor as he loves himself. 

We could easily have answered the same, "I have kept all these. What do I need to do further?" Jesus told him, "If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give to the poor. You will then have treasure in heaven. After that, come back and follow me." 

The young man left, sad, grieved and in much distress, for he had many possessions. Upon hearing this passage, another 20-year-old, rich young man by the name of Anthony, gave up his wealth to live in the desert for 20 years. Saint Anthony of Egypt, known as the 'Father of Monasticism', inspired many other men to give up worldly wealth and become monks in the desert. 

Not all of us are called to do this. Like the rich young man in Matthew 19, we should ask God what to do, for I believe, we were all born with a mission. I was listening to a couple talking with their daughter. The young girl was a little anxious because she was told by her father that one day their nice house and other properties would be her responsibility, and that she should always share the blessing with others. This hospitable couple always lent their vacation house to others for retreats or rest breaks and did not ask for payment. "How will I get the money to maintain the house? It's so expensive to let people use the house. Just the water, electricity and the subdivision dues cost so much!" The couple reassured their daughter that God will provide as He always does.

How do we become perfect? The road to perfection is a journey, and one we never undertake alone. We should walk with Jesus our friend, continuously talk with Him and ask Him the way. 

God’s Consuming Fire

 “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!” Luke 12:49

Why in the world would Jesus say that? I think of the conflagration in Australia from July 2019 to March 2020 which devastated 46 million acres. More than 5,900 buildings became dust, ashes and rubble. At least 34 people were killed, and nearly 3 billion animals were affected in Australia’s worst wildfire season in modern history. Is this what Jesus meant?

In Deuteronomy 4:24, the verse says, “For the Lord, your God, is a consuming fire, a jealous God.” In another version, it reads, “a devouring fire”. Devouring and consuming are certainly descriptions of the wildfires in New South Wales and Victoria! It is something to take seriously! 

The verse before v.24, reads, “Take heed, therefore, lest, forgetting the covenant which the Lord, your God, has made with you, you fashion for yourselves against His command an idol in any form whatsoever”. How serious a sin is making an idol in any form, shape or configuration? Very very very serious! 

An idol is a false God. It doesn’t have to be a piece of wood, or marble in a church. It can be anything we put in the place of God. It can be a person we obey and admire and defend even if he himself does and says things against God’s laws, and asks us to do things that God hates. It can be our work if our work separates us from God and the family we love. It can be many things if we put those things before God. Indeed, Jesus wants to bring fire into our lives to burn away whatever is dross from the gold. Are we prepared for God’s consuming fire? We need to be if we are serious about going to heaven! No dross is allowed there!

Path to Life

 "You will show me the path to life, fullness of joys in Your presence..." Psalm 16:11

It's easy for me to speak of the joy of the Lord. Ever since I was young, I would pray, "Lord, treat me gently", and He has for the most part. One day I was before the Blessed Sacrament during a singles' retreat in our community. God gave me a vision, my first and only one. He showed me a beautiful garden and Jesus and I were walking on the path. He said, "I am the gardener here. I take care of all these plants. I prune each and every one of them." 

"I will show you a plant I do not prune," and He took me to a decaying, ugly, dying stump of a tree. He was in effect telling me that He had to prune me, He could not treat me gently all the time. In order for me to bloom, Jesus had to cut off what was not pleasing to Him.

Sometimes we do not understand what God allows in our life. Sometimes it seems just too hard. Sometime ago, I was talking to one of our suppliers who just had another operation. She always needed dialysis and the doctors had to surgically create an access to remove and return her blood during hemodialysis. She underwent pruning regularly. I can see her as a gorgeous, magnificent rose plant in Jesus' garden. The path to life, to fullness of joys in Jesus' presence requires that we see the eternal invisible with the eyes of faith. 

Lord, help me to see with Your eyes. Your pruning brings life for it cuts off the dead places in me, and allows for new growth. 

Immortals

 “Most blessed are you among women..." Luke 1:42

As baptized believers, each one of us is capable of bearing Christ to the world. If our eyes were opened to the glory of this truth, we too would rejoice and be humbled in the presence of so holy a vessel as a sister or brother in Christ. Lord Jesus, just as You opened Elizabeth's eyes in the presence of Mary, please open my eyes to those who also bear Christ. Help me to honor the potential of each person to be filled with the Holy Spirit. 

C.S. Lewis, one of my favorite authors, wrote in his book, “The Weight of Glory”, that we’ve never talked to mere mortals. Everyone we know, our parents, our spouses, our sisters and brothers, our children, our office mates and classmates, the street sweeper, the troll online, etc., they are not ordinary people. We talk to and deal with immortals every day of our life. 

“It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses, to remember that the dullest most uninteresting person you can talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and a corruption such as you now meet, if at all, only in a nightmare.....But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit - immortal horrors or everlasting splendors,” C.S. Lewis wrote. 

How daunting to consider how flippant we are with our lives sometimes. We can waste so many precious minutes on worthless activities or conversations, throw careless hurting words at people, without thought of the impact on our immortal souls. Let us be more heedful of the choices we make each day!