The Feast of St Martin de Porres.

"Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. Which of you wishing to construct a tower does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if there is enough for its completion? Otherwise, after laying the foundation and finding himself unable to finish the work the onlookers should laugh at him and say, ‘This one began to build but did not have the resources to finish."  (Luke 14 :  25... 33).

Wednesday 3rd November 2021 in the 31st Week in Ordinary Time is the feast of St Martin de Porres.

Saint Martin de Porres was born in Lima Peru in 1579 to a black mother and a Spanish gentleman. He first entered the Dominican Priory in Lima at the age of 11 as a servant. Later, he applied to be accepted as a lay brother since he could not apply for the priesthood because of his color. He was trained as a barber/pharmacist and soon used his gifts and talents to heal both humans and animals. He lived such a life of heroic sanctity that even while he was alive, many miracles were attributed to him. After he died, he was famed as a miracle worker.

Our key Scripture from Luke 14 invites us to consider carefully the cost of discipleship before we say Yes to Jesus. Having calculated the cost of following Jesus, in order to succeed in this Enterprise, two conditions are absolutely necessary:
#1. Be prepared to give up your pet projects, fanciful possessions and self will.
#2. Make the Kingdom of God or following Jesus your top priority. Make Jesus way of being righteous your way.

On the 1st of November, we celebrated the witness of billions of Saints who witnessed by their lives that the teachings of Jesus work. They were not intimidated by the cost of discipleship. Do not be intimidated by the cost of following Jesus. The reward is unbelievable.

Daily Bible Verse @ Seekfirstcommunity.com