I shall not fear

"But he was in the stern, his head on the cushion, asleep." (Mark 4: 38)

Can God be asleep?

"God will not allow your foot to slip; your guardian does not sleep. Truly, the guardian of Israel never slumbers nor sleeps." (Psalm 121: 3-4)

"So we shall not be afraid though the earth be in turmoil, though mountains tumble into the depths of the sea, and its waters roar and seethe, and the mountains totter as it heaves." (Psalm 46: 2 -3)

Why must we not be afraid? Because …

"Yahweh Sabaoth is with us, our citadel, the God of Jacob." (Psalm 46: 3)

"Why are you so frightened? Have you still no faith?" (Mark 11: 40). If you know who is with you, you should not fear. My grace is always with you, no matter what.

Please come quickly

"Only a little while now, a very little while, for come he certainly will before too long." (Hebrews 10: 37)

Marana tha! Come Lord Jesus! Please come quickly. This was the constant prayer of the early Church. They desired intensely to see the kingdom of heaven realized as soon as possible. What they heard about being pilgrims in this world with a superior homeland in heaven, they believed with all their heart. To drive the lesson home were the constant persecutions, tribulations and sufferings they face on daily base. No wonder they hungered for a release from their current situation. While material prosperity is desirable, it may not be good for everybody. Who can doubt the fact that material prosperity deadens the senses to the spiritual? There is a tight correlation between the desire for heaven and detachment from this world. The more attached we are to this world, the more we feel that heaven is desirable but only in the far distant future.

"Only a little while now, a very little while, for come he certainly will before too long." (Hebrews 10: 37)

Come Lord Jesus. Please come quickly!

Be fearless

"Do not lose your fearlessness now, then, since the reward is so great. You will need perseverance if you are to do God's will and gain what he has promised." (Hebrews 10: 35 – 36)

It is the Holy Spirit who makes us bold and fearlessness. Biblical characters chosen by God for specific mission were all bold and fearless. David and the prophets in the Old Testament were bold and fearless. After the Pentecost, all the apostles became bold and fearless. Paul who had a natural boldness to his character acquired a supernatural boldness after he received the Holy Spirit. The above scripture from Hebrews indicate that it is possible to lose our fearlessness. We lose it if we succumb to sin and remain in sin. We lose it if we fellowship too much with the world. The world has boldness in worldly matters but very timid when it comes to the things of God.

We are encouraged by the above scripture to be constant and steadfast because the reward is very great. Dear Holy Spirit, give us the grace of boldness and perseverance so that we can serve Jesus Christ as he deserves to be served.

By Faith

“Christ took away our infirmities and bore our diseases.” (Matthew 8: 17)

How did Christ take away our infirmities and bore our diseases when we can see so many infirmities and disease in the body of Christ, not to mention the world at large? The answer is in Hebrews 11: 1-2, 8-19.

“Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen. Because of it the ancients were well attested.
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place he was to receive as an inheritance; he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he sojourned in the Promised Land as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs of the same promise; for he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and maker is God. By faith he received power to generate, even though he was passed the normal age – and Sarah herself was sterile – for he thought that the one who had made the promise was trustworthy. So it was that there came forth from one man, himself as good as dead, descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sands on the shore.

All these died in faith. They did not receive what had been promised but saw it and greeted it from afar and acknowledged themselves to be strangers and aliens on earth, for those who speak thus show that they are seeking a homeland. If they had been thinking of the land from which they had come, they would have had the opportunity to return. But now they desire a better homeland, a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

By faith Abraham, when put to the test, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises was ready to offer the only son, of whom it was said, Through Isaac descendants shall bear your name. He reasoned that God was able to raise even from the dead, and received Isaac back as a symbol.” (Hebrews 11: 1-2, 8-19)

How did Christ take away our infirmities and bore our diseases when we can see so many infirmities and disease in the body of Christ, not to mention the world at large? The answer is by faith. By faith in the word and action of Christ, we appropriate the promised blessing. Once we do that, although the physical condition of disease and infirmities may still be present, they lose completely their sting. The conditions remain in order to sharpen in us the desire for the fullness of the promise, which is everlasting life. It is through faith that we appropriate God’s promises of:
· Peace
· Provision
· Protection
· Power
· Purpose
· Pardon
Lord Jesus, increase our faith.

Sufferings and Humiliations After Conversion

“Remember the great challenge of the sufferings that you had to meet after you received the light, in earlier days; sometimes by being yourselves publicly exposed to humiliations and violence, and sometimes as associates of others who were treated in the same way.” (Hebrews 10: 32 – 33)

When we respond to the grace of Jesus Christ and embrace him and his way, the world does not stand up and say: “Hurray! Congratulations!” in fact, conversion could bring about great challenges and sufferings. The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews was fully aware of this. Every saint who has walked this path knows that this is true.

What did I expect on that fateful day in 1995 when I signed my name in my bible and promised to Jesus: “From this day till I die, I will follow you, love you and serve you?’ I expected that Jesus would be very happy that at long last, I have got the message. But I also expected many other things. At that time, I was broken in health, my finances were broken and I had no job. Life was indeed very grim to put it mildly. I genuinely expected all these problems to be fixed if not in days in a few weeks. What did I get? It took almost two years for me to recover my health. I did not get any job till five years after my conversion. After I got a job and almost 8 years later, the Lord provided just the money I needed. But that is ok for me since I have never desired or prayed to be a millionaire.

Today’s scripture describes the same condition that I have personally experienced and can attest to. But what is not mentioned is the joy, the consolation and peace that come with a genuine conversion experience. I can attest to this too. I often wonder what my life would have been if I have had a similar conversion experience 20 years earlier. Knowing Jesus brought a fresh spring time in my life. I have never been happier and fulfilled as I am today. Thank you Jesus.

The Lamp-Stand

“Is a lamp brought in to be put under the bed? Surely to be put on lamp-stand?” (Mark 4: 21)

Is Jesus Christ forming me to put me under the bed? Surely not! I believe he is forming me to become a lamp. The place of the lamp is on the lamp-stand and not under the bed. At the appointed time, he will place me on a lamp-stand. This is my firm hope. “Let us keep firm in the hope we profess, because the One who made the promise is trustworthy.” (Hebrews 10: 23)

The Hope I profess

“Let us keep firm in the hope we profess, because the one who made the promise is trustworthy.” (Hebrews 10: 23)

What hopes do I profess today?

· To know Jesus intimately
· To be friend and companion of Jesus
· To serve Christ with distinction
· To publish Christ everywhere
· To succeed totally in the Enterprise

These desires come from the Holy Spirit. The desires are implicit promises. The Holy Spirit is faithful. I profess this hope and keep it firmly in my heart.

The New Sanctuary

“We have then, brothers, complete confidence through the blood of Jesus in entering the sanctuary, by a new way which he has opened for us, a living opening through the curtain, that is, his flesh.” (Hebrews 10:19)

Jesus Christ, the priest, the victim and the altar has given us a new way of entering God’s holy presence in the new dispensation. That new way and better promise is the Eucharist. The blood of Christ shed for me makes me confident as I go to drink with joy from the spring of salvation flowing from the living opening, which is the flesh of Jesus Christ.

In this same Jesus, “We have the high priest over all the sanctuary of God.” (Hebrews 10:21). Jesus Christ is the high priest who celebrates the Eucharist. Thank you Jesus for fulfilling this better promise.

Sown among thorns

“Some seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it and it produced no grain…. Those sown among thorns are another sort. They are the people who hear the word, but worldly anxiety, the lure of riches, and the craving for other things intrude and choke the word, and it bears no fruit.” (Mark 4: 7, 18-19)

Why does our spirituality not support us? Because the word we receive maybe sown in thorns. The thorns come very tiny like the mustard seed. But they grow rapidly with time. They grow to become worries of the world, lure of riches and cravings for other things. They become masters and may take complete control of our lives. No wonder they choke the word.

Jesus said that in order for the word to produce a harvest, it must be sown in a good and rich soil. Our soul is like a garden. We must cultivate it and maintain it everyday. An unmaintained garden is soon overgrown with weed. Jesus has given us abundant means for maintaining the soil of our soul. Some of these means are:
· Word of God
· Prayer
· Eucharist
· Sacrament of Reconciliation
· Frequent examination of conscience
· Spiritual reading

What are the fruits of the word that falls on a good soil?
Peace, tranquility, joy, consolations, light and guidance, confident and victorious living. We recognize that these are also the fruits of the Holy Spirit.

When trials come

“Similarly, those who are sown on patches of rock are people when first they hear the word, welcome it at once with joy. But they have no root deep down and do not last; should some trial come, or some persecution on account of the word, at once they fall away.” (Mark 4: 16 – 17)

When I first heard the word, I received it with joy. But I had no depth of understanding. The theology was inadequate. There was no anticipation of trials and persecutions which came in the form of delays of desires and plans, obstacles and disappointments. Temptations to sin were not anticipated. The concept of the cross before the crown was not known.

As I tried to walk in the light, trials came. The foundation could not support the building. I felt disappointed and discouraged. Then Jesus Christ came a second time into my life. This time, I am beginning to understand. I came to realize that trials and patience in trials equip me with enduring power. Every morning, I offer to Jesus through Mary all my trials, sufferings and delays of the day. When delays, obstacles and disappointments come during the day, I try to remember the offering I had made in the morning and I ask for strength to cope. Because I anticipate trials, I am more prepared to meet them. Thank you Jesus.

One Single Sacrifice

“By virtue of the one single offering, he has achieved the eternal perfection of all who are sanctified.” (Hebrews 10: 14)

In Calvary, Christ offered satisfactions for us to the Father. From this single act, he made it possible for us to have the purity and sanctity to see and enjoy God forever. At Mass, we commemorate in an active and living way the one single sacrifice of Jesus in Calvary. The Mass becomes therefore the most potent prayer of intercession.

Who is my mother?

“Who are my mother and my brothers? And looking up at those sitting in circle around him, he said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers. And anyone who does the will of God, that person is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3: 33)

Jesus defines the new rule for fraternity and intimate relationship. It is based in the spirit and not the flesh. I therefore can find my mother, brother or sister anywhere I go.

Blood of Christ

“Bulls’ blood and goats’ blood are incapable of taking away sins, and that is why he said, on coming into the world:
‘You wanted no sacrifice or cereal offering, but you gave me a body. You took no pleasure in burnt offering or sacrifice for sin; then I said, ‘Here I am, I am coming,’ in the scroll of the book it is written of me, to do your will, God.’
He says first you did not want what the law lays down as the things to be offered, that is: the sacrifices, the cereal offerings, the burnt offerings and the sacrifices for sins, and you took no pleasure in them; and then he says: Here I am! I am coming to do your will. He is abolishing the first sort to establish the second. And this will was for us to be made holy by the offering of the body of Jesus Christ made once and for all.” (Hebrews 10: 4 – 10)

It is God’s will for me to be made holy through the Mass. The Mass is for me the source of sanctification. It is the Mass which fulfills for me the promise of Isaiah 12: 3, “Joyfully you will draw water from the springs of salvation.” During the epiclesis, I will ask the Holy Spirit to make me holy as he consecrates the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.

Scatter Seeds

Scatter Seeds


“This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the land. Night and day, while he sleeps, when he is awake, the seed is sprouting and growing; how, he does not know. Of its own accord the land produces first the shoot, then the ear, then the full grain of in the ear.” (Mark 3: 26)

The seed is the word of God. The seed contains life and dynamism. We do not know how it sprouts and grows but it does.
Lord Jesus, make me one who scatters seeds.

Smile at Jesus

“Look up at the Lord and smile; your face will never be ashamed.” (Psalm 33:6)

Where can we look up at the Lord today? We know and we believe that the Lord is truly present in the Blessed Sacrament. We know and we affirm that he is truly present body, soul and divinity in the Eucharist. These things we know by faith.

How can we smile at the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament and in the Eucharist? Sometimes I come to the Blessed Sacrament and to the Eucharist with a lot of burden. But I make it a rule that before I step into the presence of the Lord, I leave my despondency behind. I recognize him whom I am going to meet.

Being self-employed has helped me appreciate the real presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament in a very concrete manner. As a salesman, I have ‘often toiled the whole day and caught nothing.’ I know how looking up to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament at the end of my day has restored my spirit again and again. Thank you Jesus for your faithfulness. Surely no one who looks up at the Lord and smile will ever be ashamed. I have experienced this and I guarantee it.

Parallel Text

"For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel:

In returning and rest you shall be saved;

in quietness and trust shall be your strength." (Isaiah 30: 15)

New Revised Standard Version

"These are the words of the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel:
In calm detachment lies your safety,
your strength in quiet trust."
Revised English Bible

"For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel:
By waiting and by calm you shall be saved,
in quiet and in trust your strength lies."
New American Bible

"For Lord Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel, says this,

'Your salvation lay in conversion and tranquility,

your strength in serenity and trust."

New Jerusalem Bible

Inventory of Gifts

"Go out to the whole world, proclaim the gospel to all creation." (Mark 16: 15)

This is the great commission.

'But Lord, how am I to do this?'

'You are learning now. You will be told what to do at the right time.'

What are the gifts I am likely to need to fulfill the great commission in my life?

• Knowledge
  
• Teaching
  
• Writing
  
• Faith
  
• Prophecy
  
• Discernment of Spirits
  
• Wisdom
  
• Evangelical simplicity
  
• Administration
  
• Intercessory prayer
  
• Encouragement
  

'Lord, this is a long list. Bless me with these gifts and help me to deploy them in the work of my life.'

The Mission of Paul

"The Lord replied, 'Go, for this is my chosen instrument to bring my name before gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel; I myself will show him how much he will suffer for my name." (Acts 9: 15)

The mission of Paul:

• Bring the name of Jesus before 'gentiles and kings'
  
• Bring the name of Jesus before the people of Israel
  
• Suffer much for the name of Jesus
  

Did people fulfill this commission? Read the Acts of the Apostles. Read the letters he wrote to the churches.

The Witness

"The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will, to see the upright One and hear his own voice speaking, because you are to be his witness before all humanity, testifying to what you have seen and heard." (Acts 22: 14)

Ananias communicates to Paul his vocation. Christ had promised Paul: "Get up and go into Damascus, and there you will be told what you have been appointed to do" (Acts 22:10)

• Paul was chosen to know God's will.
  
• Paul was chosen to be a witness to Jesus before all humanity.
  
• Paul was chosen to testify to what he saw and heard.
  

He carried out his life's work admirably through preaching, teaching and writing.

What is my mission? I learn and I teach. Has God really chosen me to be a friend and companion of Jesus? If this is so, God will confirm his call at the appropriate time. Can I appropriate Acts 22: 14? Lord Jesus, I am completely yours. Lead me, guide me and use me. Amen.

"I will open before you a door that no man can shut." (Revelation 3: 8)

"What am I to do, Lord?"

“I said, ‘What am I to do, Lord?’ The Lord answered, ‘Get up and go into Damascus, and there you will be told what you have been appointed to do.” (Acts 22: 10)

What am I to do Lord? “Get up and go to Aston, and there you will be told what you have been appointed to do.”

As I wait for the Lord’s word to be fulfilled in my life, I need patience. Surely, I will be told what I have been appointed to do at the right time. Thank you Jesus. I think of the Chinese proverb: “When the student is ready, the teacher appears. When the teacher is ready, the student appears.”