Humility Comes From Wisdom

“Beloved: Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show his works by a good life in the humility that comes from wisdom.” James 3:13

In some translations of this verse, humility is interchangeable with meekness. First comes wisdom, and then follows humility and meekness. Totally opposite from what the world would tell us, right? Usually when one is wise in the world’s ways, he is superior, and usually arrogant and thinks he is always in the right. The humble man is one with low self-esteem and thinks he should always be at the back and bottom of the rung.

But what is Biblical humility? I always like to study this, because I am not naturally humble. I can be over confident at times, that’s what my sisters tell me anyway. I certainly don’t set myself up as less than I am or put myself down in any way. But that’s not what being humble is in any scriptural sense.

Could it be that being humble merely means we recognize how big a God we serve, and we see ourselves as really so insignificant but His amazing love changes all that? We can be a Moses who was a friend of God, but who knew the size of His God. That is why Moses was a “very humble man, more so than anyone on the face of the earth.” (Numbers 12:3) Moses was a witness to so many miracles God was capable of. How about David? In many verses of 2 Samuel 7, we see King David’s humility before God: “Who am I, Sovereign Lord, and what is my family, that you have brought me this far?” The King deeply respected God, and in His prayer, He showed how amazed he was at how God wanted to honor him. “How great you are, Sovereign Lord! There is no one like you, and there is no God but you!” He believed God’s promises to him and he was awed! 

If we are to be wise, we too should know God’s promises to us. Like King David, if we believe in His promises from of old, we too will be deeply humbled and amazed at how much God loves and treasures us. Perhaps we already know these promises, and they have grown stale from rereading. We need to go back and ask the Holy Spirit to imbue them with new life. After all, we are all sons and daughters of the King of Kings. There is no limit to what Almighty God can do for us! 

Loving Needs Practice

“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same.” Luke 6

The way I see it, love is the masterpiece of the human heart. I have been painting in my faith journal since 2006. Back then, my paintings were awkward and elementary. Just simple and childlike. From painting every day, I have learned how to shade and use colors. I'm no expert, but I practice drawing. For instance, it took me 2 years to learn how to draw hands. It’s taking longer to master drawing birds.

It's the same with loving. It needs practice. How can we expect to love as Jesus loves? He who gave His life for His friends AND enemies and sinners. He who allowed His body to be broken and mangled just so those He loved would have joy, peace and love, and ultimately, be with Him in heaven? Loving the way Jesus loves takes a choice every day. We need to be conscious that God loves each one of us so much, we will have no choice but to spread that love to others. We have to look at others and see them the way God sees them. Our annoying boss. God knows his heart, God sees his pain. Terror teacher? She has fears too. A father who refuses to be helped. A friend who drinks secretly. A son who constantly feels rejected no matter what you do. God sees all our idiosyncracies, our weaknesses, our sins. But He loves us anyway. He doesn't love us because we are pretty, or because we perform well at our work, or because we are always kind and helpful. He loves first. Lord, teach us every day to love like You!

Lord, only You can help us make a masterpiece of our life!

Taming the Tongue

“…no man can tame the tongue…from the same mouth comes blessing and cursing.” James 3:8

We really have to be very careful about our speech even in our anger, because it can haunt other people. A staff of ours inadvertently told a supplier something that was supposed to be confidential because it was detrimental to our negotiations. I got so mad that I told the staff that if she was like that, she could not be successful in business. Now that our staff is not with us anymore, and she has tried to go into business for herself, she remembers what I said, and blames me for her failures. We never expect that our words will have long lasting, detrimental effects. Even if we apologize, as I have done, and tried to help, giving suggestions, the damage has been done.

On the positive side, when we bless others with our words, it can also have long lasting and wonderful results. When Dodie Osteen was young, she got polio and as a result she had one foot shorter than the other. She was quite self conscious about that as she wore different sized shoes, and they did not look nice. But one day, Dr TL Osbourne said, “Look at Dodie, she walks like a Princess.” Ever since then, Dodie still hears those words in her head. “I see myself walking like a Princess,” she says.

Teachers have so much influence over their students, and can imbue them with self confidence if they recognize their gifts and encourage them to use it. Same with parents, and managers, and husbands and wives. Everybody really! We all have that amazing tool, the tongue, that can make or break people. Let us all be encouragers, and inspirers, and bless others with our words.

Show No Partiality

“My brothers and sisters, show no partiality as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. For if a man with gold rings and fine clothes comes into your assembly, and a poor person with shabby clothes also comes in, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say, “Sit here, please,” while you say to the poor one, “Stand there,” or “Sit at my feet,” have you not made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil designs? “ James 2:1-4

I long for the day our Philippine politicians will not be so entitled. When I went to Vancouver, I saw a man speaking in the sidewalk, no bodyguards, no fanfare, and I learned he was running for Mayor. We won’t see that here. In other countries you don’t have the names of councilors or mayors on imposing concrete structures as if the land it is on is their own private property. Here if a politician steals billions from public funds they can run for a position. If an old man steals bread because his family is hungry, he lands in prison. Obviously this is so contrary to the teachings of Jesus. 

But feeling privileged is not confined to politicians, rich or important people. I’ve acted entitled several times. We need to watch out for those times, when we feel above other people. For example, when we think we can call out a security guard for correcting us, when he is actually just doing his job. One time I was very arrogant with a bank teller. Even if I was in the right as I believed, I could have been more polite. There are many ways God teaches us to be humble. We should be sensitive to those times, and act as if the person we are speaking to is a brother or sister. We should see them through the eyes of Jesus, and always act in love.

Be Doers of the Word

“Be doers of the Word and not hearers only." James 1:22

What if I had to leave our business for a month to set up another office and I left someone in charge? Every day I would send instructions via email about what needs to be done, what to follow up on, what employees needed to do what, etc. At the end of the month, I come back and I see that the office is a mess, employees are not at their desks and the one I put in charge of everything, was nowhere to be found! When I ask questions, I find out that every day, they went through my instructions, underlined it, divided into groups and discussed it. BUT THE INSTRUCTIONS WERE NOT OBEYED!

Sometimes Christians can be very diligent about studying the Word. The words in our Bibles are underlined, encircled, colored in. If you look at my old Bible, almost all the words are highlighted. I have notes in the margins. In my new Bible I have paintings on many of the pages. But what matters to God?

Jesus said in John 14:15, "If you love me, keep my commandments." In Matthew 12:50, Jesus stretched out His hand toward his disciples and said, "Whoever does the will of My Father is My brother, My mother, My sister." If we want to be part of God's family, we need to be doers of the Word!

Every Good and Perfect Gift

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17

The whole Bible is God revealing Himself to us. It is the invisible God made visible. Ultimate love observable. 

When God created man in His image, He made them the perfect environment, with everything they needed and could ever want. But alas, He also gave them the gift of choice, the gift of free will. “You are free to eat from any of the trees of the garden except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. From that tree you shall not eat; the moment you eat of it you are surely doomed to die." 

Put a kid in Disneyland. It's huge. So many exciting things to do. Almost an infinite number of delights to experience. Then you say, "You can do anything, eat anything, have anything, just don't touch THIS!" All of a sudden, his desire just zooms into touching the forbidden! Our rebel hearts are just like that kid's! God has given us so many blessings and gifts. Do we focus on these gifts, or do we focus on what we do not have and yearn for? 

I read in The Anawim Way that the first garden we are given to cultivate and care for is our own soul. We have choices to make every single day, whether to nurture our spiritual life, or make it a desert. The Cross is the new "tree of life in the middle of the garden". 

Thank You Father that although You banished man from Paradise, You made a way for us to experience fellowship with You again through Jesus. Your love breaks through our rebelliousness, our willfulness, our sinfulness. Help us to see the garden You have placed us in through Your loving eyes. 

Count It All Joy

“Count it ALL joy whenever you face trials of many kinds." James 1:12

At a party in 2014, I met Jessica Cox. She was born without arms due to a rare birth defect, but she would not trade her life for the world. She is the world's first licensed armless pilot and first armless black-belt in the American Taekwondo Association. She uses her feet as most people use their hands as she has not worn her prosthetic arms since she turned fourteen. She can drive, type on a keyboard, place her contact lenses, all with the use of her feet. She is also a certified scuba diver. 

By any standard she is an amazing lady. During her speech, she said something to the effect that if she had a choice, she would choose NOT to have arms. 

Her greatest accomplishment is maturing from someone who was angry and upset about being differently abled to being able to celebrate that and use it as an opportunity to give hope and inspiration to others. Today she is an awesome Christian motivational speaker who shows us that with God nothing is impossible! 

Truly when we seek God with all our heart, our trials and challenges become stepping stones to all God wants to accomplish through us! ❤️

Jesus, Living Water

“Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.” Matthew 5:6

Father Rene Regalado was found mauled, with multiple gunshot wounds on his head, last January 24 in Malaybalay city. Father Rene was known as “Paring Bukidnon” because he had been endorsing organic farming and had written about issues of farmers in his social media posts. He is the fourth priest to have been murdered since 2017. Father Richmond Nilo was shot dead as he was preparing to say mass in the Nuestra Señora de la Nieve Chapel in Zaragoza, Nueva Ecija. He was persistently pursuing a rape case against a man who was accused of molesting 3 altar boys. Two more priests who were murdered were known political activists working for justice for the people. 

There is an old song by the group Kingston Trio named “Desert Pete”. It tells of a water pump in the desert. When travelers cross the dry dusty cactus desert, they are joyfully surprised to find this water pump. There’s a bottle of water and a note stuck to to the pump which says, “This pump is old, but she works. You’ve got to prime the pump. You must have faith and believe. You’ve got to give of yourself ‘fore you’re worthy to receive. Drink all the water you need but leave the bottle full for others.”

The traveler has to pour all the water in the bottle over the pump to get it to work. If he drinks all the water first, the pump won’t work, he’ll get thirsty again and the next travelers won’t be able to drink. 

Life is like that. We are all travelers, pilgrims, thirsty and hungry for the meaning of life and our purpose. Some of us, just take our one life and spend it on ourself. But we will soon be empty again. Some of us meet Jesus and empty ourselves into His hands. He will be the living water for us, and He will give our life meaning and purpose. 

I do not know much about the priests who were murdered but I am pretty sure they knew Jesus and were willing to pour out their lives for Him and for others. Lord, be with Your people and fight for us. Amen.

Give, Give, Give

“How many loaves do you have?” Mark 8:5

In our world today I marvel at how some people are not satisfied with all the wealth and power they have amassed. They want more, more, more. We need to learn from this and see that in God’s Kingdom it is the ones who have learned to give, give, give who are blessed and are able to bless  others. 

In the parable of the multiplication of the loaves, Jesus’ disciples cannot see how the multitude can be fed. “Where can anyone get enough bread to satisfy them here in this deserted place?” they asked Him, and He responded, “How many loaves do you have?” They replied, “Seven.” 

This Gospel story reminds me of Benjie Abad, or Mang Urot, who put up a soup kitchen in 2012 to feed the hungry and the homeless three times a week. It was called Karinderia ni Mang Urot. He cooked the food in his own home, and then brought it to the parking lot of the Bank of Commerce along Quezon Avenue and Examiner st. in Quezon City. He started this with no fanfare and no marketing, but eventually people came to volunteer their time and their resources. When my dad was alive, he would contribute rice and other food. We joined in ladling out soup and talking to the street children a couple of times. Our staff in the office made a project of it and were blessed to share their blessings by cooking the food and distributing it to about eighty people who gathered there. Many spent their birthdays there and found joy in feeding the hungry and having fellowship with people you wouldn’t usually meet in the normal course of a day. 

When the lockdown started and gatherings were not allowed, Mang Urot had to find a new way of feeding the hungry and he started going around to find them and distribute the food every three or four days. When donations kept coming in, he was able to get six people on motorcycles giving out 1,200 relief packs for the homeless inside Metro Manila. Mang Urot saw a need and decided to help instead of criticizing the government for its failures. 

How many times have I not given because what I had was a pittance compared to the vast sea of need I saw around me? During disasters like floods and earthquakes, how many times did I look on in helplessness? Did I not have five barley loaves and two fishes? 

I am just like the people who want more, more, more, if I cannot give, give, give. God provides more than enough for us to share. Let us be His partners in blessing the world! 

Choose the One Thing

And gazing up to heaven, Jesus groaned and said to him: “Ephphatha,” which is, “Be opened.” Mark 7:34

When people brought a deaf and mute man to Jesus, and begged Him to heal the man, Jesus did something different. Jesus took the man away from the crowd, away from all the gawking onlookers waiting for miracles. He then put His fingers into the man’s ears, and spitting, touched his tongue. Then gazing up to heaven, Jesus groaned and commanded the man’s ears to hear. This is a foreshadowing of the Ephphatha ritual in the Sacrament of Baptism, where the priest touches the child’s ears and mouth with his thumb: ears to receive Christ's word, and mouth to proclaim his faith "to the praise and glory of God”.

It’s good to go away with Jesus now and then, to leave the hustle and bustle of our day, to stop checking our phones, and not be slaves to the urgency of our to do lists. What do we do first thing in the morning? That sets the pace of our day. Do we spend time with the Lord and plant His Word in our hearts first before allowing the world with its myriad concerns to intrude? Just like the deaf and mute man, if we go away with Jesus, we may be able to hear Him speak to us. If we go away with Jesus, He can open our ears to hear rightly, our eyes to see the truth, and our tongue to speak life giving words to others!

Sometimes our days with all its problems and concerns can seem like a bunch of cords messed up together. When I try to untangle all of it, pulling at this and that with no plan just messes it up more. But if I concentrate on one cord, deliberately taking it over and under, in and out, separating it from the others, I am more successful. 

That way, we can follow Jesus’ advice in Luke 10:38-42. We can choose the one cord, the “one thing”, the better portion. A joyful life of intimacy with the Lord awaits us if we put the Word before the world! 

Crumbs from Your Table

“Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps.” Mark 7:28

This is one Bible story I am not very happy about. A Syrophoenician woman went to Jesus on one occasion, fell at his feet, and begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter. I assume that it was because she was not a Jew that Jesus answered the cryptic: “Let the children be fed first. For it is not right to take the food of the children to throw it to the dogs.” 

If I was this poor woman, would I have understood what Jesus meant? It was like a puzzle, a mystery that required the right answer. Fortunately, the mother had the “missing piece” she needed. She answered, “Lord, even the dogs under the table eat the children’s scraps.”

Dogs? Dogs!!!! Even if Jesus meant puppies, or beloved pets of the household as some commentaries explain, it was still an insult. But this woman did not mind the rejection. She was humble, she was focused, she was persistent, she was resolved to get her daughter healed. I think before approaching Jesus, she asked questions about Him, “researched” in a way. Who was he? Was he really a healer, a miracle worker, prophet? Along with the tidbits, she learned He was a Jew, and some called Him the Messiah who came for the chosen people. That’s why she knew the “winning answer”!

In Matthew 15, we learn that she calls Him, “Son of David”, a title for the Messiah. She knew that the Messiah would come to save the chosen people, the Jews. That’s why she did not protest when He said He came to prepare a feast for His people and it was not right to give the food to the “dogs”, what the Jews usually called the Gentiles.

Jesus said to her, “For saying this, you may go. The demon has gone out of your daughter.” Oh, happy day when our prayers are answered! Do we know how to approach Jesus? We need to be humble, focused, persistent and resolved. Ever since the early Church, the people of God prayed back to God the Words He had given them. We NEED to know God and His promises so we stand on sure ground when we pray. 

Sometimes we do not understand when God is silent, when God seems deaf to our cries. Perhaps He is trying to draw out the genuineness of our faith. Perhaps he is testing us so we learn perseverance, endurance, we learn not to give up.  

Give us, gracious Father, crumbs from Your Table, and we shall be saved.

What Defiles

“But what comes out of the man, that is what defiles him. From within the man, from his heart, come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly. All these evils come from within and they defile.” Mark 7:20-23

When my mother was still alive, we went on a tour of pilgrimage sites in Europe because we found out she had tongue cancer. On the very first day, we waited to have lunch in a Chinese restaurant in Paris. While seated inside, we noticed that the waiters removed the tea cups from a pail, and the insides of the cups were filthy with the tea residue. After discussion, we left, along with many of our tour mates. The dirt inside the tea cups was easy to see. Even the pail was yukky. What an experience in one of the most beautiful cities in the world! 

In contrast, only God can see what is inside us! Jesus saw that the Pharisees were hypocrites, that they were experts in making people feel guilty about small matters of the law, while they themselves neglected what was more important to God, loving our neighbor and putting God first. In Psalm 139, David wrote, “O Lord, You have probed me and You know me...You understand my thoughts...my journeys and my rest you scrutinize, with all my ways You are familiar.” 

Yes, God knows us inside out. We cannot hide from Him. He made us and we are His. We cannot fool Him. Just as He probes us, let us probe ourselves as well, observing what we need to repent of. What comes out of our mouth and heart? 

“For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” (Matthew 12:34) 

“The good person out of the good treasure of the heart produces good, and the evil person out of evil treasure produces evil; for it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks.” (Luke 6:45)

He loves us in spite of our weakness and sin. He is willing to help us be more than conquerors! 

One Life to Live

“My soul yearns and pines ​for the courts of the Lord. My heart and my flesh ​cry out for the living God.” Psalm 84:3

We have only one precious life to live. Will we give it back to the One who loves us best, or will we live it with no concern for the purpose for which we were made? We may have a difficult life, but we can still live it for God. We celebrate today the Feast day of St. Josephine Bakhita. She is the first Saint from Sudan and was canonized in the year 2000 by Pope John Paul II. 

Josephine was born into a prestigious and prosperous family but when she was about 7 to 9 years old, she was abducted by Arab slave traders and was sold and re-sold five times in the markets of El Obeid and Khartoum. She was beaten by her masters, and from one of those beatings, could not move from her bed for a month. A total of 114 intricate patterns were tattooed on her body while her mistress was watching with a whip in hand. 

The Italian Vice Consul who bought her, brought her to Italy and there she became nanny to a young girl named Mimmina. When the mother needed to meet her husband in Sudan, Josephine and Mimmina were left in the care of the Canossian sisters in Venice. There, Josephine first learned of Jesus and was enamored. "Those holy mothers instructed me with heroic patience and introduced me to that God who from childhood I had felt in my heart without knowing who He was,” she wrote. 

When Mimmina’s mother came to take them away, Josephine refused to leave, and an Italian court had to intervene. Slavery was outlawed in Sudan before Josephine’s birth and Italian law did not recognize slavery. Josephine chose to remain with the Sisters, entered the novitiate and took her vows. Her life was marked by a heart for missions, and an ever-present gentle smile. 

When asked what she thought of those who kidnapped, flogged her and kept her a slave, Josephine said, “If I were to meet them, I would kneel and kiss their hands, for if that did not happen, I would not be a Christian and religious today.” 

One life to live. Do we give it to God? 

All My Sorrows

Then Solomon said, “The Lord intends to dwell in the dark cloud…” 1 Kings 8:12

A dark cloud. Why would the Lord choose a dark cloud to dwell in? 

Today there are innumerable magnificent Cathedrals like the ones in Florence, Milan, Cologne, Santiago de Compostela, Reims, Paris and of course Rome. Just entering one of these sacred spaces inspire us to awe and wonder of the God who gave the inspiration and skill to man to create these masterpieces. God did say in Genesis that He made man in His image. I believe He found so much joy and satisfaction in forming the lofty mountains, the fantabulous creatures in the sea and air, the meandering rivers, and the changing seasons, that He wanted to share this delight in designing and building with man. 

Anyone who paints, draws, dances, plays an instrument, designs houses, cooks, etc., has felt this satisfaction and camaraderie with our Creator. God our Father was so generous to give us this gift of imagining and bringing into being something that didn’t exist. It’s not magic, but can feel like magic in a way. We can know and love God  because He has revealed Himself in the beauty of nature, and in the gifts He has bestowed on us. Our hearts lift up high when we hear the symphonies of Handel, Mozart, Tsaikovsky or Strauss. Or when we see statues and paintings of the masters. So yes, God reveals Himself to us in the beauty of creation and the created things by human hands. 

But at the same time, we cannot know Him fully. Thus the “dark cloud” He chooses to dwell in. As St. Paul says, “at present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face. At present I know partially; then I shall know fully, as I am fully known” (1 Cor 13:12). When we ask questions like, “Why am I undergoing this hardship?” or “Why is there evil in this world?”, sometimes God does not choose to answer us, and keeps us in the dark. We just need to trust Him, that He loves us so much, that not a single tear, nor any level of pain is wasted. In Psalm 56:8, there is this reassurance: “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.” 

God knows. God cares. One day we will know as well the whys. Or perhaps it will not matter at all, because by then, we will be with the One who loved us first, loves us always and best. 

Put Out Into the Deep

“Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.” Simon said in reply, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at Your command I will lower the nets.” Luke 5:4-5

I watched this scene in the series, “The Chosen”, when Simon had to call others to help him with the abundance of fish they caught in their nets. Imagine, after a frustrating night of not being able to catch anything! I am sure fishermen are familiar with this. How tired they must be after a whole evening of trying to catch fish and not a single fish to show for it! They must have been frustrated and discouraged! 

After two years of this pandemic, aren’t we in the same boat? The constant state of flux is frustrating for families, businesses, schools, entire countries, cities and towns. What have we to show after this whole length of time waiting for the virus to lose its effect on our lives? God must have big plans to have allowed such a cataclysmic situation that affects the whole world. What would He have us do???

I think we should invite Him into our boat, so we can hear Him say, “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.” Sometimes, God allows us to feel helpless and discouraged so there is a space in our hearts for Him to come in. When we are full of ourselves, our successes, our accomplishments, we do not take the time to dwell on the more important things in life, our relationship with God and our fellowmen. We have to realize our lives are in God’s hands, and He is here for us in good times and bad. God is not after our success but our willingness to work with Him. 

Give Me an Understanding Heart

“I am a mere youth, not knowing at all how to act. I serve you in the midst of the people whom you have chosen, a people so vast that it cannot be numbered or counted. Give your servant, therefore, an understanding heart to judge your people and to distinguish right from wrong. For who is able to govern this vast people of yours?” ​1 Kings 3:7-9

When Solomon was young, God asked him to ask for anything he wanted, and out of all the things he could choose, Solomon asked for wisdom. Our choices make us, make our future, make our families, make our character. In this world, there is no lack of examples of men who have chosen the gold and the power of this world instead of the treasures of heaven. That is what we can call short-sighted thinking. 

Solomon chose wisdom, and God gave him everything in addition to wisdom. In Wisdom 7, we can read, “I pleaded for the spirit of wisdom...Yet all good things together came to me in her company, and countless riches at her hands.” Wisdom is the key that opens every door, but oddly enough, wisdom is not something we pray for every day! 

We need to start listening for God’s guidance every day, so that if we listen to Him for little things, we will hear Him clearly for the big things. Will I change my job? Will I move my family to the US? Will I marry him? How can I solve my problem? What should I do? To receive God’s wisdom for the hard things, we need to go to him every day when we do not have a decision to make, a hard choice, a dilemma, a crisis. We need to train ourselves to listen to His still, small voice. I think hearing from God is the most important thing in our life! 

Heroes for our Time

John the Baptist said to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” Mark 6:18

Every day is a fitting day to ask God to raise up heroes in our country. Let us pray that He would embolden and enlighten ordinary men and women like you and me who would be unafraid to speak His truth and bring His light into the world. Here is a description of King David, one of the heroes of the Bible: “As a youth he slew the giant ​and wiped out the people’s disgrace, When his hand let fly the slingstone ​that crushed the pride of Goliath. Since he called upon the Most High God, ​who gave strength to his right arm To defeat the skilled warrior ​and raise up the might of his people…”

The passage in the Gospel of Mark is about John the Baptist and how he was unafraid to speak the truth even when Herod was a powerful man and a despot who liked to get his own way. Herod was brash and liked to show off, promising the young daughter of his mistress Herodias that she could ask anything from him after a dance that pleased him. After a consult with her mother, she asked for the head of John the Baptist. John was beheaded. 

Did that silence John the Baptist? Many would say yes. But I believe he lived on in the consciences of many, including Herod himself, who I am sure, was haunted by the voice and the words of the man. In Mark 6:16, Herod thought John had come back from the dead in the person of Jesus Christ! And he was not the only one. Many said of Jesus: "This must be John the Baptist come back to life again!"

The truth will prevail and the truth will not die. Let us pray for heroes. Each one of us must be a hero. We have a calling to be prophets for our time. In Esther 4:14, the Queen Esther was called to task by her uncle Mordecai. "For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father's family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?”

Take Nothing for the Journey

“Jesus summoned the Twelve and began to send them out two by two...He instructed them to take nothing for the journey but a walking stick –no food, no sack, no money in their belts.” Mark 6:7-8

When St. Francis of Assisi heard the gospel on taking nothing for the journey on Feb. 24, 1208, he was overjoyed. I can't imagine anyone being overjoyed at Jesus' instructions to the Twelve Apostles to go out preaching and to take nothing but a walking stick! But Saint Francis had been feeling the pull of God in dreams and visions, and he felt that this was the clear direction he had been seeking.

Although he had been a rich young man, with a taste for luxurious clothes and good food, he had renounced his possessions to the dismay of his father, and embarked on begging for food and for stones to rebuild a small church. Why did Jesus instruct them to bring nothing but a walking stick? 

In The Anawim Way, I read today, “This poverty is an integral part of their mission. Jesus requires them to go forth as poor men so that they will always remain aware that they are totally dependent on God. Whatever results they may achieve will not come through human means but through divine providence. Jesus is more concerned that His disciples be poor than that they be successful. Success in the eyes of the world is not a measure of value in the Kingdom of God, whereas poverty of spirit is the key to being a truly effective minister – even if the world pays no attention at all.”

Like Saint Francis, we too are pilgrims on a journey. We take different paths, but we go to the same God. We will all learn eventually that we need to take nothing on our journey. Everything will be left behind.

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep, to gain that which he cannot lose." (Jim Elliot, from his diary, Oct. 28, 1949)

Revelation

“My eyes have seen your saving deed...” 

Luke 2:30

February 2nd, exactly 40 days after the birth of Jesus, is the Feast of the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple. “When the days were completed for their purification according to the law of Moses, they took Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord, just as it is written in the law of the Lord.” So Jesus, the Messiah, the Savior of the world, was ransomed the same way every Jewish boy was blessed and bought with five shekels according to Old Testament law. 

We can read this law in the 18th chapter of Numbers, 14-16: “Everything in Israel that is devoted to the Lord is yours. The first offspring of every womb, both human and animal, that is offered to the Lord is yours. But you must redeem every firstborn son and every firstborn male of unclean animals. When they are a month old, you must redeem them at the redemption price set at five shekels of silver…”

There was an old man in the Temple who witnessed this visit of the Holy Family to the temple. His name was Simeon, a just and God-fearing man, and it was revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Christ. Simeon took Jesus in his arms and said in joy, “Now, Master, you may let your servant go ​in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, ​which you prepared in the sight of all the peoples: a light for revelation to the Gentiles, ​and glory for your people Israel.”

What can we learn from Simeon? I believe that we too can receive a revelation from God if we want it enough. Jesus said, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.” Jesus does not barge in, demanding we listen to Him. We have to invite Him in. If we open the door, we will marvel like Simeon at what God will do in our lives.

Perfect Love Banishes Fear

“Do not be afraid; just have faith.” Mark 5:36

I don’t know if many people believe that God speaks to us, that Jesus desires to have a conversation with us. I just spent a whole weekend retreat listening to talks, sharings, and having quiet time in response to the message, “My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me.” (John 10:27) 

Why does God compare us to sheep? Because sheep are near sighted, and they can get into serious harm if they stray from their shepherd. Ever since I was young, I would listen to God and I know He really, really takes care of us. He is involved in my unimportant every day activities, and in the big events of my life and major decisions. But recently, I find myself in  unknown territory. I still have my pulmonary hypertension and need oxygen 24/7, and my poor husband has to do so many things to help me. When I was praying about this during the weekend, God told me to have no fear.

“Remember when you were in the hospital and you felt My presence very near you, that you had no fear at all? Perfect love banishes fear. Always strive to live in that love, that perfect love, where there is NO NEED TO FEAR for your future, for whoever becomes President, for whatever befalls Robert (my brother with cancer). Know that wherever you are, there I will be. One day you will be in my real home. Although I cannot wait for that day, there are still things you need to do, to know, to become. Trust Me and live in My perfect love.”

Perfect love. Yes I only have to remember when I was in the hospital in December 2019, when I had to undergo a coronary bypass to be followed by a  pulmonary artery embolectomy under deep hypothermic circulatory arrest. I had no fear at all, I was so fully at peace that when the nurse asked if I needed something to help me sleep the night before my open heart surgery, I said no. I slept very well and woke up early enough to have some time for prayer before they gave me an anesthesia before wheeling me off to the OR.  Amazing grace! Indeed, perfect love banishes fear and uncertainty!