Food for Our Spirit

 

Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid...” 1 Kings 17:13

How seriously do we take God’s promises? God is the same today as He was during Elijah’s time. The difference today is that we have a whole book of His promises to lean on. In 1 Kings 17, we meet the true prophet Elijah, whom King Ahab called Israel’s trouble maker. Elijah was hiding from the notorious Jezebel, Ahab’s wife, because just as she plotted to kill all the Lord’s prophets, she wished him dead as well. 

Elijah asked a poor widow in Zarephath for some water and bread. The widow informed him she only had enough flour and cooking oil for one more meal for herself and her son. “Then we will die.” 

Elijah said, “Don’t be afraid. First make me a little flat bread and bring it to me. Then prepare something for yourself and your son. For the Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘The jar of flour shall not go empty, nor the jug of oil run dry, until the day when the Lord sends rain upon the earth.’”

The widow believed the words God promised through Elijah and she and her son did not go hungry. Today, Jezebel comes in many forms, but always she comes to destroy God’s people, His words and promises. There is widespread deception and cynicism, and the popularity of atheism and agnosticism. All to suppress the power of faith in God and His Word. If we believe and lay claim to His promises today, just as the widow in Elijah’s time, we will never go hungry in more ways than one. The Words of God are food for our spirit and soul, the part of us that will live forever.

Poor in Spirit

 “Blessed are the poor in spirit…” Matthew 5:3

What does blessed mean?  

Partly it means that God turns His face towards us with divine favor. With all the good in Him. To be poor in spirit, what does that mean? It's not that we have no money or resources, I think it means being aware that we are spiritually bankrupt before the Lord. That we have absolutely nothing that we can offer Him because He is awesome, and mighty and does not need anything from us.

I used to give talks about our business to students. I never failed to mention that God is a partner in our business, and we are successful because of Him. Prayer is always a part of the way we do business.

After one particular talk, I was inordinately pleased with myself and sort of congratulated myself for doing a good job. Immediately, God took me to task and showed me verses from Luke 17. 

In it the master says, “When you have done everything that was assigned to you, you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have simply done our duty.’”

The Beatitudes are not about what we do. If we are a CEO, or a garbage collector, a priest or a toilet cleaner,  that is not what is important to God. What is important is what we are, our character. 

Are we becoming like Jesus every day? Because for all our roles and duties, God can raise up stones to do it all better than we can!

God’s Love

 “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you do not have LIFE within you." John 6:54

This is certainly very strange and a "mysterium fidei"- a mystery of faith. What I know is Jesus wants us to feed on Him. When we eat our meals, the food becomes a part of us and makes us strong. But when we feed on Jesus, WE become a part of Him! A part of His body, a part of His Church. 

God’s Word is creative and if He says, “Whoever eats this bread will live forever,” we better ask, “What can He mean? How do we eat Him if I want to live forever?” 

If we read it in the original Greek, Jesus uses the word “trogain” which means to GNAW, as a lion would eat the meat off the bones of its prey. “Unless you GNAW me, you will not have life within you.” This was very disgusting to the Jews because they were taught from childhood, from the Law and the Prophets, that they should never eat animal flesh with blood. Many followers left His side at this point. Did Jesus tell them, “Come back! I did not mean what you think! I only meant that you eat me symbolically!”? No! He let them go. 

In many ways the Old Testament prefigured the Holy Eucharist and the first Jewish Christians believed in the real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. They saw the Eucharist as the new Passover, the new manna from heaven and the new Bread of the Presence. Dr. Brant Pitre lectured about Jesus and the Jewish roots of the Eucharist. One of the points he brought out was that the mystery of the Trinity is foreshadowed in the tabernacle of Moses.

The 3 key symbols in the tabernacle, he said, were the Ark of the Covenant (God the Father), the lamp stand or the menorah with tongues of fire (Holy Spirit), and the gold table with the Bread of the Presence (Jesus). In the Jewish Talmud it says that at Passover, the priest would take the table from the holy place of the temple. And in the midst of the people, the priest would lift up the table with the bread and say, "Behold God's love ❤️ for you."

Thank You Lord for the bread that You give, Your flesh which You sacrificed to give us life and love! And thank You for choosing us to be your instruments to spread Your love to others!!!

The Lord Sees

 

“They gave from their surplus wealth, but she gave from her want, all that she had to live on." Mark 12:44

I can imagine this poor widow in heaven now. Imagine, Jesus pointed her out to the disciples as someone to emulate. She put in a meager 2 small copper coins as her offering, while the wealthy poured in substantial amounts. Jesus said, "She contributed more than all the others who donated to the treasury!" 

What kind of calculator does Jesus have if 2 small copper coins is worth more than ALL the other donations? 1 Samuel 16:8 shows us: "For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart.” 

Others may find us generous but God sees if we have an ulterior motive. After all, we cannot hide anything from Him! 30 year old Chrissy Archibald was one of the people killed in the London Bridge terrorist attack in June 2017. She used to serve in homeless shelters. She is described as kind-hearted and she cared especially about homeless people struggling with addictions. 

Instead of reacting with bitterness and hate, her family decided to spread love and generosity by asking people to remember her by either volunteering or donating to homeless shelters. The hashtags #chrissysentme and #chrissysentyou spread on Twitter.  "Make the world a better place." Many responded with donations and volunteered their time and effort. 

Lord, help us to fight the evil in this world with Your weapons: love, hope, prayers, generosity, truth, and unity. Nothing is impossible with You!

Feed Our Spirit

 “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16

Do we really realize that 100% of us, with no exception are going to die? This body which we take so much care of, is decaying, even as we breathe.

St. Paul writes in 1 Timothy 4:8, "For bodily exercise and discipline is of some value, but Godliness and spiritual training is profitable, has value for all things in every way, for it holds promise for the present but also for the life to come."

I can't help comparing the time we spend for our bodies (bathing, dressing up, applying lotion and make up, eating, taking vitamins and supplements, buying clothes and shoes, exercising, etc.) with the time we spend tending our spirits. Our body is not who we are. When we take care of our body, we are taking care of a temporary thing, a thing that is perishing every second of every day. But when we take care of our spirits, we take care of the eternal.

Jesus, as He was on the cross, called out, "Father, into Your hands, I commit my Spirit." To commit means to entrust for safekeeping. Jesus didn't say, "I commit my body". He knew He would get a brand new one. It was so easy for His Father to recreate His mangled and bloody body, just as He will for us one day.

Do we spend more time taking care of our physical bodies than we do for our true selves, our spirits? Let's take stock of our priorities and remember that if we spend time reading scripture, we are feeding our spirits which will never die.

St. Maximus

 

"If we have died with Him we shall also live with Him. If we persevere we shall also reign with Him." 2 Timothy 2:11-12

This verse reminds me of all the saints who died with Christ, who died as witnesses defending Him. Saints like Maximus the Confessor who is a little known saint. 

St. Maximus left his important post as a court secretary of the Eastern Roman emperor Heraclius I to pursue monastic life. He was far from inconspicuous as a monk however, having been drawn into the political religious controversies of his time. He was arrested three times for believing and teaching that Jesus Christ was the incarnate Son of God, fully human, and fully divine. His tongue was cut off so he might not speak these “heresies” and his right hand was cut off so he may not continue to write. Then he was sent into exile where he soon died. 

Today, it does not cost us much to be Christians. But do we share our faith as much as we can? Can we face Christ as His witness and claim we have died walking with Him?

Stir Into Flame

 “Stir into flame the gift of God bestowed on you when I laid my hands on you." 2 Timothy 1:6

This verse is part of a letter written by Saint Paul to Saint Timothy. I do not know how old Saint Timothy was when he accompanied Saint Paul in his travels but I like to think of him as a young man when he converted to Christianity. Saint Paul baptized and circumcised him.

"Stir into flame the gift of God" can be compared to the Star Wars greeting, "May the Force be with you". Luke Skywalker was told by his mentor, the Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi, "The Force will be with you. Always." What was the Force in these popular movies? Obi-Wan explained to Luke that the Force was what gives the Jedi his power. It's an energy field that surrounded them and penetrated them. It held the galaxy together. I'm not an expert on Star Wars but the way I see it, when Luke Skywalker was sensitive to the Force, he was able to fight the Dark Side successfully.

We have the Holy Spirit within us. We should be in training like the young Jedis to sense God's presence, movement and guidance in our every day life. There are many dark forces, enemies that seek to turn us away from God. Even our busy schedule can keep us from praying and connecting with God. With the Jedis, the mightier the foe, the more the Jedi had to close their eyes, keep still and connect to the force before the battle. The same with us! The busier we are, the more we should find time to be still, talk to God and listen.

Looking at this gift God bestowed in another way, imagine having an inheritance, a valuable piece of commercial property in New York, a fabulous gem-studded clock by Faberge, or a magnificent painting by Michelangelo. The only thing is we have absolutely no knowledge of it. We did not know about it because we did not bother to read the will outlining our bequest and what we had to do to attain it. 

The gift of the Holy Spirit, which Paul talks about in his letter to Timothy, is a gift Jesus died to give us. It is an amazing legacy, much more precious than anything money can buy. And it is available for anyone! Young, old, rich, poor, someone with a PhD or with no education at all. It is absolutely crazy not to find out how to have this gift for ourselves, and if we have it, to stir it into flame!

Whose Image is on You?

 

“Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” Mark 12:17

This is one of the most satisfying encounters of Jesus with the Pharisees and Herodians. These people were the trolls of Jesus’ day. They pretended to be righteous and truthful and wise, when all they wanted was to trap Jesus. They asked Him whether it was lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not. How we all wish Jesus’ answer was different! 

Back then, their taxes were even more crippling than ours. There was not only the income tax, there were crop taxes, property taxes, sales taxes, emergency taxes, and a tax collector could even stop someone carrying a load to pay taxes on that as well. The taxes and the grain were sent to Rome and it was used to support the lavish lifestyle there. No wonder there were riots because of the taxes imposed on the Jews. 

Jesus’ answer utterly amazed them. He was not trapped. On the contrary, His answer still resonates with us today. It is so dismaying and disheartening to see how our taxes are being wasted, stolen even, by people in government with no conscience. The government borrows billions of pesos with almost no account made of how it was spent. Senate inquiries go around in circles while our people go hungry, lack jobs, adequate health care and good education. 

Jesus asked His questioners to show him the Roman coin, the denarius. “Whose image and inscription is this?” On one side, the face of Tiberius Caesar Augustus was inscribed, on the other, the words, Pontifex Maximus or “Highest Priest”. 

“Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and to God what belongs to God.” Pay Caesar his taxes even if we do not like what he does with it. We are citizens of two kingdoms. One kingdom, in which we are exiled for a little while, will not last. We are also citizens of an eternal Kingdom. 

Whose image is on us? In Genesis, we read that each one of us, is made in the image and likeness of God. His fingerprint is on us, just as a potter’s fingerprint is on his clay pot. You and I, we belong to Him. Kingdoms come and go. Caesars, no matter how much power they seem to have over our lives, decay and become dust. Let us just follow the instruction in Jeremiah 29:7: “Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper.”

The Fruit of Service is Peace

 “Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:43-45

I am 69 years old already and I still have not learned this very important lesson. To be a servant, one must have the heart of a servant. And no human being better exemplifies that than Mother Teresa who spent her life giving love to the least of God's people.

David Kessler tells one of the nicest stories about how Mother Teresa helped him with his book, "The Needs of the Dying". When he visited India in 1996, he had the opportunity to meet with her when she was told he worked with Elisabeth Kübler Ross, a pioneer in near death studies, and was himself writing a book. He described her as having "kind brown eyes, intensely wrinkled skin, and the warmest of smiles." She treated him like an old friend, and told him that soon she would be dying as well. He said that she talked about God as if He was her dearest, oldest friend, and that she was so looking forward to being with Him. 

Before he left, Mother Teresa asked for his business card and she gave him hers:

The fruit of silence is prayer,

The fruit of prayer is faith,

The fruit of faith is love,

The fruit of love is service,

The fruit of service is peace.

When he finished his book, he sent it to her, and she wrote the most wonderful praise for the book. When he told a friend that he felt he didn't deserve Mother Teresa's good words, his friend said: "So you don’t feel you deserve it. Then here is what you have to do. Spend every day of your life earning that praise.” And that is what David Kessler tries to do. 

If Mother Teresa was able to provoke this man to a life of service, so should we try to spend every day of our life pleasing our Father. 

Lord, may I live my life such that when I meet You face to face, You shall say, "Well done, good and faithful servant." Teach me to be a servant like You, Lord.

Let Your Love be Intense

 “Let your love for one another be intense...” 1 Peter 4:8

Saint Peter, at the start of this passage, writes, “The end of all things is at hand. Therefore be serious and sober-minded so you will be able to pray. Above all, let Your love for one another be intense, because love covers a multitude of sins.” 

There was one night I had the strangest dream about of all things, the end of the world. There was a giant computer screen in the sky that everybody around the world could see, and a woman’s automaton voice was warning of the coming apocalypse. The screen was filled with swirling masses of gas, and a countdown, and lots of other changing images. The strange thing was almost no one was minding it. We were in an amazing theme park, and even if people could hear the countdown, people were running around trying to find the most exciting ride, the best blockbuster attraction. People were laughing, talking to each other, pulling each other to and fro. 

Isn’t that a picture of what’s happening in the world? In the Bible, there are several warnings about the end of the world. It may not happen to everyone at the same time, but for each and everyone of us, the end of the world will come.

We live our lives as if there is no end in sight. But there is a countdown for each of us as surely as there was a visible one in my dream. No doubt God wants us to enjoy ourselves in this beautiful world He gave us, BUT He reminds us to live bearing in mind what is important. “Be serious and sober-minded so you can pray. Love one another intensely. Be hospitable to one another without complaining. Use your gifts to serve others. In all things, may God be glorified.”

God’s Love

“ For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

There is so much skepticism in the world. It’s cooler to be a skeptic than to feed our faith. Or perhaps we want to be practical, and really hope and faith are not practical. We can’t touch it or see it. We think we can’t apply reason or critical thinking when it comes to Jesus, if He really can give us enough bread, if He really can guide us, if we really can depend on Him. The list goes on. 

My starting point is always, is He who He claims to be? If He is God, then we should take Him and His words seriously. If He is God and He is not flicking His finger to solve poverty and the huge problems of the world, God does not have to explain to us why He allows it all to continue. If He is God, He has His own reasons! 

God’s ways are far above our ways and His thoughts are higher than our thoughts. It is so strange that He chose to come as a baby, a weak human being, dependent on His mother. He was born of the lineage of David, and in Bethlehem. All this was foretold by the prophets Micah and Isaiah. In the Old Testament God gave various signs to watch out for so we could recognize the Messiah when He comes. And some of those prophecies were about how the Messiah would be betrayed and put on trial, beaten and mocked. There are about 300 prophecies in the Old Testament unveiled in the New. 

A mathematician said that the chance of one person fulfilling only 8 of those 300 prophecies is 1 in 100,000,000,000,000,000. 1 person fulfilling 48 prophecies: 1 chance in 10 to the 157th power. Only God could have divinely orchestrated when He would be born, and the events afterwards. One may wonder: WHY? 

LOVE. God SO loved the world that He GAVE His only begotten Son that whoever believes in Him may not perish but HAVE everlasting life. Let us believe in Him, and His Words, so that one day we will be with Him in the fullness of His crazy awesome plan for us!

The Stone the Builders Rejected

 “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone…” Mark 12:10

Just as Jesus was rejected and scorned, many missionaries through the ages have been tortured, mistreated and even murdered. In Africa, usually a hotbed for martyrdom, the White Fathers (The Society of Missionaries of Africa), established a community of stalwart converts who evangelized with a zeal that outmatched their own. They started evangelizing, instructing and leading new believers that the missionaries could not reach. Many of these young Christians lived and taught in the King’s court.

King Mwanga was no ordinary King. He was a pedophile who preyed on the young men who served him as pages and attendants. The Christians tried to protect these young men from the King’s sexual violence. Joseph Mkasa, a 25 year old Catholic, was the chief steward and was brave enough to confront the King for his actions. He was beheaded and burned in 1885, but not before he proclaimed, “A Christian who gives his life for God is not afraid to die." 

The King then ordered the chief page, Charles Lwanga, to take over Mkasa’s duties. Charles indeed took up Mkasa’s unfinished business by having about a hundred cathecumens baptized by the White Fathers. In anger, the King brought his entire court before him, and separated the Christians from the non-Christians, and ordered that the Christians make a 37 mile trek to Namugongo, where they would be executed. The White Fathers witnessed the courage and joy of these young converts as they marched to their deaths. Charles Lwanga was chosen for a private execution and as he was being burnt, said, “It is as if you are pouring water on me. Please repent and become a Christian like me." June 3 marks the Feast day of St. Charles Lwanga and his companion martyrs. 

In spite of the danger, men and women still go out of their comfort zones to evangelize. Usually, they feel God calling them to preach the good news, they are impelled by an urge bigger than themselves, stronger than their fear. How about us? We are also instructed by Jesus to “go out into the world and preach the good news” (Mark 16:15). We need not fear being tortured or mutilated or beheaded. But are we able to obey Jesus even if we will be rejected or ridiculed just like our Saviour?