The Cup

The Cup

“Put your sword back in its scabbard; am I not to drink the cup that the Father has given me?” (John 18:11)

Jesus has now come to the supreme moment of crisis, the moment of decision.  He knows what his Father expects of him at this hour.  But there are other voices suggesting he takes a different approach.

In all of life-threatening crisis, we face the same temptation.  There is always more than one way:

• The way of “the cup that the Father has given.”


• The way of “the sword” for rapid victory or solution.

Every good general understands that for every battle, there is a corresponding and appropriate weapon.  It is an over-kill to kill an ant with a hammer just as it is useless to face a motorized armored division with one on a horse back.  Deep prayer, similar to the one Jesus said in the Garden of Olives gives us the spiritual freedom to make the right choice.  Without this support from God, the temptation to adopt the way of “the sword” will be overwhelming.

When we face a crisis, we should aim to discover God’s way of responding.  We can discover this, only through prayer and subsequent gift of spiritual freedom.  

“Lord, what is your will in this?  I seek your will and not my own.  Show me your will.  Amen”

St Patrick

"He shall receive a blessing from the Lord, a reward from God his savior. Such is the race that seeks for him, that seeks the face of the God of Jacob."
(Psalm 24: 5-6)

Every 17th of March is remembered as St Patrick's Day in the United States, Canada, Ireland, Australia, and many other countries. Why is this saint who was born in 386 still remembered and honored today? St Patrick is remembered in history for bringing Christianity to Ireland. He is the patron saint of Ireland, a small country with great influence in the world. Ireland is best known for its missionary spirit. St Patrick survived many hardships and achieved his life's purpose because of a spirit of strong faith and tenacity.

Patrick was abducted from his home in Kilpatrick in England at the age of sixteen and enslaved in Ireland. He worked as a herdsman for six years before he got an opportunity to escape into Gaul, modern France. There he prepared for the priesthood and was ordained a priest. After his ordination, Patrick returned to Ireland and worked for the conversion of the Irish people.

St. Patrick died in 461. March 17 is the feast of St Patrick. March 17 is also my birthday. I was born on St. Patrick’s Day in St. Patrick’s parish at a time when the feast of St. Patrick was a school holiday in my country, Nigeria. But I was not baptized Patrick but Emmanuel. I had often wondered why. I never had the opportunity to ask my parents before they died. Most probably the reason may be that my parents chose the name Emmanuel before I was born.

Prayer of St Patrick
Christ is with me,
Christ is before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in the heart of everyone who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

BOOKS ON ST PATRICK

Consecrate me to the truth

Consecrate me to the truth

“Consecrate them in the truth; your word is truth.  As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world, and for their sake I consecrate myself so that they too may be consecrated in truth.”  (John 16: 17-19)

Jesus prays to the Father to consecrate me in the truth.  To be consecrated to the truth is to be completely dedicated to the truth, fully immersed in truth.  This is a critical condition for being in the world and not of the world.  To be effective in God’s service in the world, one must be consecrated in the truth.  

What is the truth?  The truth is Jesus, the world of God.  I must be consecrated to Jesus , the truth in order to bear fruit in the world.  The world represents those whose priorities are other things apart from God.  We have three realms:  public sector, private sector and religion.  There are those in the public and private sector who by their lives and witnessing do not belong to the world.  And there are those in religion who are worldly.

Jesus also said that knowledge of God and his Christ constitutes eternal life.  Consecration to the truth is eternal life.  And the eternal life is for those who are in the world but not of the world.  

The Joy of Answered Prayer

The Joy of Answered Prayer

“I tell you most solemnly, anything you ask for from the Father he will grant in my name.  Until now you have not asked for anything in my name.  Ask and you will receive, and so your joy will be complete.” (John 16: 23-24)

I have said to myself many times that I have never experienced any joy as intense as the joy of answered prayer.  Jesus himself seems here to confirm my intuition that when the Father grants your heart’s desire, the joy is intense.  

One time I experienced this joy was in 1980.  I had desired to go to London to study Marketing.  All the odds were stacked against me.  But one day, God opened the way.  I landed in London on a September night.  The next morning when I left my hotel and stepped into the street of London, I experienced the intense joy of answered prayer.

July 18, 1992 was a day that will be difficult to forget in my life.  Seven months earlier, I embarked on building my own house from the scratch.  I had no clue of what was involved.  After I had committed a great deal of resources to the project, it seemed as if it was mission impossible.  I bent my knees in prayers.  I raised my hands before God asking for his assistance and favor.  On July 18th, the first night in the house, I had such a sweet feeling during my light sleep that I thought the whole thing was a dream.

Yes, indeed, God our Father answers prayers in Jesus’ name.  And when he does, how great and how intense is our joy.

The Birthing Process

The Birthing Process

“I tell you most solemnly, you will be weeping and wailing while the world will rejoice; you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn to joy.  A woman in child birth suffers, because her time has come; but when she has given birth to the child she forgets the suffering in her joy that a man has been born into the world.”  (John 16: 20-21)

I wrote the reflection below on the above scripture in 1996 during my Desert experience:

“What does this scripture say to me today?  I relate it to my present condition and I find it a great encouragement from Christ, my Lord.  I weep and wail today while some of my friends in the world are rejoicing.  I am also sorrowful and bewildered.  Jesus is saying to me today that this sorrow will turn into joy and I believe him.  Thank you Jesus.  He also compares my present situation to a woman in childbirth.  The process of birthing or transformation is taking place in me.  The old me is dying.  This is painful and the cause of the weeping, wailing and sorrow.  But this necessary process and stage will not last forever.  After the rain comes the sunshine.  After the test, the testimony.  The cross must precede the crown.  Lord Jesus, I believe in your word.  I can see my crown even now.”

Ten years have gone by since I wrote the above.  What is my testimony today?  Very simple!  Jesus Christ is faithful yesterday, today and forever.  The Desert experience and the birthing process are over.  But the pilgrimage continues.  I can sincerely sing with Mary:  
“My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.
He has helped Israel his servant,
remembering his mercy,
according to his promise to our fathers,
to Abraham, and to his descendants forever.”(Luke 1: 46-47; 54-5.)

The fullness of truth

The fullness of truth

“But when the Spirit of truth comes he will lead you to the complete truth, since he will not be speaking as from himself but will say only what he has learned; and he will tell you of the things to come.  He will glorify me, since all he tells you will be taken from what is mine.” (John 16: 13-14)

The Holy Spirit has come to me.  I do not wait for any other coming.  What I do now is to grow in the Spirit through the word of God, the sacraments and prayer.  As I grow in the Spirit, he leads me more and more into the truth about Christ, his mission and his teaching.  The complete truth will not be revealed all at once.  But I have the promise that I will be led to the fullness of truth as I develop spiritually.  The means are laid down by Christ Jesus himself:  word of God, the Eucharist and prayer.

The Spirit will teach me about Jesus.  Everyday I pray to know the heart of Jesus intimately, to love him passionately and to follow him everywhere.  It is the Spirit who inspires me to pray thus.  It is the same Spirit who will accomplish these ideals in me.

Thank you Jesus for the gift of the Holy Spirit.  I recognize that he is your greatest gift to me.  His presence is a guarantee that all your promises to me will be fulfilled.

The fullness of truth

The fullness of truth

“But when the Spirit of truth comes he will lead you to the complete truth, since he will not be speaking as from himself but will say only what he has learned; and he will tell you of the things to come.  He will glorify me, since all he tells you will be taken from what is mine.” (John 16: 13-14)

The Holy Spirit has come to me.  I do not wait for any other coming.  What I do now is to grow in the Spirit through the word of God, the sacraments and prayer.  As I grow in the Spirit, he leads me more and more into the truth about Christ, his mission and his teaching.  The complete truth will not be revealed all at once.  But I have the promise that I will be led to the fullness of truth as I develop spiritually.  The means are laid down by Christ Jesus himself:  word of God, the Eucharist and prayer.

The Spirit will teach me about Jesus.  Everyday I pray to know the heart of Jesus intimately, to love him passionately and to follow him everywhere.  It is the Spirit who inspires me to pray thus.  It is the same Spirit who will accomplish these ideals in me.

Thank you Jesus for the gift of the Holy Spirit.  I recognize that he is your greatest gift to me.  His presence is a guarantee that all your promises to me will be fulfilled.

When I am afraid...

When I am afraid….

“I have told you all this so that your faith may not be shaken …..  But I have told you all this so that when the time for it comes you may remember that I told you.”
(John 16: 1-4)

What is it that Jesus has told me so that my faith may not be shaken?  What has he told me that should help me in times of crisis?  What are the things that Christ says to me today that sustains my faith in the Enterprise?  Here are a few:

• I give you peace.


• I am with you; I am for you.


• My grace is always with you.


• Ask and you shall receive.


• If you want to be my follower, take up your cross and follow me.

These are some of the things that Jesus says to me today that sustains my faith.  I am encouraged to seek from God’s word: peace, courage and strength.  Psalm 56: 3-4 puts it so well:

“When I am afraid, I put my trust in you,
in God, whose word I praise
in God I put my trust and have no fear,
what power has human strength over me?”