Jesus
summoned his Twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits to
drive them out and to cure every disease and every illness. The names of the
Twelve Apostles are these: first, Simon called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James,
the son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and
Matthew the tax collector; James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus; Simon the
Cananean, and Judas Iscariot who betrayed Jesus.
Jesus
sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus, “Do not go into pagan
territory or enter a Samaritan town. Go rather to the lost sheep of the house
of Israel. As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at
hand.
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Reflection:
Where
does The Kingdom of Heaven lies? It lies within you and it has been with you
since you’ve been baptized. But you may say, if the kingdom of heaven is within me, why is
it that my life is still problematic? This is for the reason that you refuse to live
your life according to God’s will for you. You are living your life according
to your own will and not according to God’s will.
So what
happens when you live your life according to your own terms? You open your life
to many problems, problems that you could actually avoid if you only live your
life according to the will of God. But many of us do not have an awareness of the will of God because we overpower it with our own selfish will for ourselves.
It’s not
difficult to know God’s will for you, by going to Holy Mass you will begin to discern
God’s will for your life. By reading your bible you will discern the will of
God for you. By your frequent interactions with Jesus through your prayers you
will discern the will of God for you.
Many of
us are lost in this world because we are not always in touch with Jesus. Yet we
are always in touch with materialism and other worldly things. Thus we have no
awareness of the kingdom of heaven that resides within us already. – Marino J.
Dasmarinas
A
demoniac who could not speak was brought to Jesus, and when the demon was
driven out the mute man spoke. The crowds were amazed and said, “Nothing like
this has ever been seen in Israel.” But the Pharisees said, “He drives out
demons by the prince of demons.”
Jesus
went around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming
the Gospel of the Kingdom, and curing every disease and illness. At the sight
of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them because they were
troubled and abandoned, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his
disciples, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master
of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.”
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Reflection:
How does
the gospel speak to you today? Does it tell you that you need to do something
for the kingdom of God? Jesus tells the disciples in our gospel and He tells
this to you too! “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few (Matthew
9:37)”.
Indeed,
the harvest is abundant yet those who venture to volunteer their time for the
glory of God’s kingdom are still few. We don’t know the reason behind but
perhaps we could guess that we have become very materialistic. We devote our
entire time for our own glory in this world. So we forget that there is a much
greater glory beyond this world that awaits us and that is the kingdom of God.
When we
are near death already the labors that we have given to this world will not
matter anymore. We will not think about how big our bank accounts. We will not think about our
many worldly achievements.
What we
will be thinking about is the status of our soul after we die. This is what
confronts a dying person: The status of his/her soul after it departs from
his/her body. Therefore to avoid this dilemma let us do something for the
advancement of the kingdom of God in this world.
Any
effort that we do today for God no matter how small. For so long as we
sincerely do it for His greater glory. Will be permanently etched
in the heart of God and will become our
passport to heaven when our departure time comes. - Marino J. Dasmarinas
While
Jesus was speaking, an official came forward, knelt down before him, and said, “My
daughter has just died. But come, lay your hand on her, and she will live.” Jesus
rose and followed him, and so did his disciples. A woman suffering hemorrhages
for twelve years came up behind him and touched the tassel on his cloak. She
said to herself, “If only I can touch his cloak, I shall be cured.” Jesus
turned around and saw her, and said, “Courage, daughter! Your faith has saved
you.” And from that hour the woman was cured.
When
Jesus arrived at the official’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd
who were making a commotion, he said, “Go away! The girl is not dead but
sleeping. And they ridiculed him. When the crowd was put out, he came and took
her by the hand, and the little girl arose. And news of this spread throughout
all that land.
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Reflection:
Do you believe
that Jesus can cure you of whatever that ails you? The woman who had been
bleeding for twelve years believed that she would be healed by Jesus. She believed that the moment she
touched even the tassel of Jesus cloak she will be healed. What a display of
deep faith!
Sometimes
we don’t get what we wish from Jesus because we doubt. We allow the devil to disturb
our faith in Jesus thus we don’t get what we want. We see in the gospel a woman who had been
suffering from hemorrhages she obviously has deep faith. Faith that is willing to
overcome whatever obstacles that are put in front of her. Do you have the same deep faith as this
woman in the gospel?
When
Jesus noticed this woman of faith, He told her, “Courage, daughter! Your faith
has saved you (Matthew 9:22).” And the result was immediate physical healing
coming from Jesus and surely the woman was completely healed.
Are you
suffering from any form sickness right now? Prayerfully ask Jesus to heal you! Beseech
Him to give you the same healing that He gave the woman in the gospel. Jesus
will surely heal you for He will not refuse anyone who approach Him with deep
faith. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus departed from
there and came to his native place, accompanied by his disciples. When the
sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were
astonished. They said, “Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom
has been given him? What mighty deeds are wrought by his hands! Is he not the
carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James and Joses and Judas and
Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took
offense at him. Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in
his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.” So he was not
able to perform any mighty deed there, apart from curing a few sick people by
laying his hands on them. He was amazed at their lack of faith.
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Reflection:
A successful man who
died was being given lavish praises by his relatives and friends during his
eulogy. Lavish praises that he richly deserved for he was a good and humble
man. Lavish praises that they purposely did not tell him while he was still
alive for they envied him.
When Jesus went back
to the place where he grew up in Nazareth. He went to their Synagogue to give a
lecture and He did it with wisdom and eloquence. Yet Jesus did not receive any
congratulatory acknowledgement not even a simple handshake. Or a gesture
of recognition from his former town mates.
Instead Jesus
received from them derision and scorn. Because they could not accept that a
former carpenter could speak to them with so much wisdom and eloquence. A former
carpenter whom they knew very well could someday speak in their house of
worship. So they belittled Jesus instead
of giving Him a well-deserved recognition.
Don’t we also act
often times like the town mates of Jesus? We are very quick to judge and
belittle our fellowmen and even our relatives who achieved a certain degree of
success in their lives.
Why are we very quick to belittle? Why are we very quick to give unjust judgment? This is
because of our very high regard of ourselves, perhaps this is brought about by
our riches, education and status in life.
We place ourselves
in a pedestal so high that we cannot anymore bend our knees in humility. We
cannot anymore recognize worthy achievement because our eyes are already
clouded with the cataract of our egos and high self-image.
If we are quick to
draw judgment and scorn we also open ourselves to the same judgment and scorn. –
Marino J. Dasmarinas
The
disciples of John approached Jesus and said, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast
much, but your disciples do not fast?” Jesus answered them, “Can the wedding
guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come when
the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. No one patches
an old cloak with a piece of unshrunken cloth, for its fullness pulls away from
the cloak and the tear gets worse. People do not put new wine into old
wineskins. Otherwise the skins burst, the wine spills out, and the skins are
ruined. Rather, they pour new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are
preserved.”
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Reflection:
What can we learn from our gospel today? We learn that when we already have Jesus in our lives we are already like a fresh wineskin. Fresh or new wineskin is
sturdy and strong. It can withstand the pressure when a new wine is poured into it.
This is
what we become when we already have Jesus in our lives. We can withstand
whatever problems that life would bring to us. Nobody and no problem no matter
how difficult can break us because we have Jesus in our lives.
It’s so
hard for many of us to feel the presence of Jesus because we
hardly have time for Him. We don’t invest time with Jesus yet we can invest
time for other things. Some of us would even reason out that we hardly have time
to be with Jesus because of the many pressures of life.
But how
come we have time for other things? For example, why is it that we can squeeze time
to do facebook and for other worldly things? If we can do facebook and for other worldly
things. Why can’t we have time for Jesus our life giver? This is the paradox of
our modern time right now: We don’t have time for Jesus yet we create time for other worldy things.
If you
want to have a fresh and positive viewpoint about your future and about life in
general. Let Jesus come into your life do not close your heart to Him in favor of
the things of this world. Which would bring you nothing in the end except more
troubles and pressures.
Is Jesus
already an important component of your life? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Thomas,
called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the
other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But Thomas said to them, “Unless
I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and
put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” Now a week later his disciples were
again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were
locked, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to
Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it
into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.” Thomas answered and said
to him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you come to believe
because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have
believed.”
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Reflection:
Do you sometimes
need an affirmation of your faith in Jesus? That is perfectly ok because it show
signs of your growing faith. If you want your faith in Jesus to be affirmed you
simply have to be sensitive to the movement of Jesus in your life.
For
example the new life that is given to you every morning. It’s not a routinary flow of life that you wake-up every morning. It’s Jesus giving you a new life
every morning! If you are sensitive to the movement of Jesus in your life. You
would discover that the dawning of a new day that you experience every morning is
a miracle from Jesus.
Thomas
needed an affirmation of his faith from his Lord and Master (John 20:25). He
wanted to see first the wounds of Jesus before he believes. He wanted to touch it and put his finger into the very wounds of Jesus before he believes that Jesus had resurrected (John 20:25).
Are we
not like Thomas too? We often times want our faith in Jesus to be affirmed by
His signs? Jesus has been giving us signs that He moves in our lives everyday,
we simply have to be sensitive to these signs. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
After
entering a boat, Jesus made the crossing, and came into his own town. And there
people brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher. When Jesus saw their
faith, he said to the paralytic, “Courage, child, your sins are forgiven.” At
that, some of the scribes said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming.” Jesus
knew what they were thinking, and said, :Why do you harbor evil thoughts? Which
is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? But
that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”– he
then said to the paralytic, “Rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.” He
rose and went home. When the
crowds saw this they were struck with awe and glorified God who had given such
authority to men.
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Reflection:
What does
this story of the paralytic who was brought to Jesus tells us? It tells us that
we too need to go to Jesus for Him to heal us and to forgive us of all our
sins. This tells us also that we also need to bring others to Jesus to be
healed and forgiven by Him too!
We all
have a need for Jesus in our lives. We may not need Him now because we are in
the pink of health. But time will certainly come that we will be forced to go
to Him even beg Him so that Jesus could heal us also.
Let us
not anymore wait for that time to come when we are already sick before we go to
Jesus. Let us go to Him now while we are healthy or in the pink of health Let
us not delay for tomorrow may be late already.
In like
manner we too are encouraged by the gospel to bring others to Jesus. This we
could do best through our acts of love, mercy and compassion. For we can’t
bring others to Jesus without loving them, without showing them our mercy and
compassion.
We
certainly can’t bring others to Jesus if we judge them. Let us
rather help them and try to understand them and be more patient with them. So
that they could be enlightened by Jesus as Jesus has enlightened us. – Marino
J. Dasmarinas
As Jesus
got into a boat, his disciples followed him. Suddenly a violent storm came up
on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by waves; but he was asleep. They
came and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” He said to them,
“Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?” Then he got up, rebuked the
winds and the sea, and there was great calm. The men were amazed and said,
“What sort of man is this, whom even the winds and the sea obey?”
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Reflection:
Do you always
seek the help of Jesus when you pass through the storms of your life?
While in
the boat with Jesus the disciples encountered a very powerful storm. They were
naturally terrified so they asked Jesus for help, they said to Him; “Lord save us we
are perishing (Matthew 8:25)!”
How many
times have you encountered storms in your life? Many time over perhaps, in
every storm that you encounter always remember that Jesus is always there for
you. Ever ready to help you and bring you out safely of these storms that you
encounter and may encounter still.
What if
Jesus was not with the disciples during that fateful night when their boat was
being battered by the storm? To whom would they be asking for help? To no one,
they could have all perished in that violent storm. But Jesus was there to save
them all.
This is
the advantage of having Jesus in your life. You always have somebody very
powerful to rescue you whenever you are in distress. You always have somebody
who will take away your fears, even your biggest and greatest fears.
Do you
always seek the help of Jesus whenever you pass through the storms of your
life? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
When
Jesus went into the region of Caesarea Philippi he asked his disciples, “Who do
people say that the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist,
others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them,
“But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter said in reply, “You are the Christ,
the Son of the living God.” Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon
son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly
Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my
Church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will
give you the keys to the Kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be
bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
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Reflection:
Do you
know Jesus? Yes you know Jesus but do you feel the presence of Jesus in your
life? Knowing and feeling Jesus are two different things. Many of us know Jesus
but not as many feel His majestic presence in our hearts. We don’t feel the presence of Jesus in our hearts because we lack time for Jesus, that’s how
simple it is. We don’t feel the presence of Jesus in our lives for the
simple reason that we lack time for Him.
Peter did
not only know Jesus, he felt also the presence of Jesus in his life. Peter felt
the presence of Jesus in his life
because Peter had time for Jesus. Among the disciples it was Peter who was always with Jesus it was Peter who had more time for Jesus. Peter went with Jesus to the mountain of transfiguration.
When Jesus walked on water Peter saw Jesus and even asked Jesus if she could go
to him. And there were many other events that Peter was always in the company Jesus.
If you
want to feel the gentle, saving and calming presence of Jesus in your life. You
only have to do one thing and that is to spend more time with Jesus. Be with
Him at Holy Mass, hear Him speaking to
you and telling you stories and parable by reading your bible. Hear Him assuring you of
His abiding presence in your life through your prayers. And be with Him by visiting Him in
the Eucharistic Adoration Chapel.
Do you want
to feel the presence of Jesus in your life? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
When Jesus had
crossed again in the boat to the other side, a large crowd gathered around him,
and he stayed close to the sea. One of the synagogue officials, named Jairus,
came forward. Seeing him he fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him,
saying, “My daughter is at the point of death. Please, come lay your hands on
her that she may get well and live. He went off with him, and a large crowd
followed him and pressed upon him.
There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for
twelve years. She had suffered
greatly at the hands of many doctors and had spent all that she had. Yet she
was not helped but only grew worse. She had heard about Jesus and came up
behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak. She said, “If I but touch his
clothes, I shall be cured.” Immediately her flow of blood dried up. She felt in
her body that she was healed of her affliction.
Jesus, aware at once
that power had gone out from him, turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who
has touched my clothes?” But his disciples said to Jesus, “You see how the
crowd is pressing upon you, and yet you ask, ‘Who touched me?’ And he looked
around to see who had done it. The woman, realizing what had happened to her,
approached in fear and trembling. She fell down before Jesus and told him the
whole truth. He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has saved you. Go in peace
and be cured of your affliction.”
While he was still speaking, people from the
synagogue official’s house arrived and said, “Your daughter has died; why
trouble the teacher any longer? Disregarding
the message that was reported, Jesus said to the synagogue official “Do not be
afraid; just have faith.” He did not allow anyone to accompany him inside
except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James. When they arrived at the
house of the synagogue official, he caught sight of a commotion, people weeping
and wailing loudly.
So he went in and
said to them, “Why this commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but
asleep.” And they ridiculed him. Then he put them all out. He took along the
child’s father and mother and those who were with him and entered the room
where the child was. He took the child by the hand and said to her, “Talitha
koum,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise!” The girl, a child of
twelve, arose immediately and walked around. At that they were utterly
astounded. He gave strict orders that no one should know this and said that she
should be given something to eat.
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Reflection:
What does an
encounter with Jesus do to us? It gives us hope and it cures us. There’s a
story of a woman who had a terminal sickness. She was told by her doctor that
she only had two months to live. But this woman was a woman of strong faith.
She attends Holy Mass every day and does other things to strengthen her faith
in Jesus.
When she was told that
she had two months to live, she told her doctors, I will prove all of you wrong
I’m going to beat this severe sickness with my faith in Jesus. True enough,
after two months the woman of faith was still alive and totally free from her
severe sickness.
We have in our
gospel two stories of faith, hope and healing coursed through an encounter with
Jesus. The first one is the story of
Jairus a synagogue official whose daughter was in death throes. Jairus went to
Jesus to plead Him to cure his young daughter. Seeing the faith of Jairus Jesus
went to his house to cure and bring back to life Jairus’ daughter.
The second story of
faith hope and healing is an unnamed woman who for twelve long years had been
suffering severe hemorrhages. She heard that Jesus would be passing by her way. It gave her hope and it further strengthened her faith. So she did her best to
touch even the cloak of Jesus for she believed that by simply touching it she
would be healed. And she was able to touch Jesus cloak and was indeed
immediately healed.
There could be a
third story of faith, hope and healing by Jesus. And this third story could be
your own story. What is your testimony of faith, hope and healing by Jesus?
Share it so that others faith and hope in Jesus could be strengthened!
All of us one way or
the other have our own story of encounter with Jesus let us not keep this story within
us. Let us share it so that others may know Jesus and hopefully have also an
encounter with Him. – Marino J.
Dasmarinas
When
Jesus entered Capernaum, a centurion approached him and appealed to him,
saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, suffering dreadfully.” He
said to him, “I will come and cure him.” The centurion said in reply, “Lord, I
am not worthy to have you enter under my roof; only say the word and my servant
will be healed. For I too am a man subject to authority, with soldiers subject
to me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come here,’ and he
comes; and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and he does it. When Jesus heard this, he
was amazed and said to those following him, “Amen, I say to you, in no one in
Israel have I found such faith. I say to
you, many will come from the east and the west and will recline with Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven but the children of the
Kingdom will be driven out into the outer darkness, where there will be wailing
and grinding of teeth. And Jesus said to the centurion, “You may go; as you
have believed, let it be done for you. And at that very hour his servant was
healed.
Jesus
entered the house of Peter, and saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a
fever. He touched her hand, the fever left her, and she rose and waited on him.
When it
was evening, they brought him many who were possessed by demons, and he drove
out the spirits by a word and cured all the sick, to fulfill what had been said
by Isaiah the prophet: He took away our infirmities and bore our diseases.
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Reflection:
Why is
Jesus a magnet to people most especially to who are in need? Because Jesus
never refused anyone who asked for His help most especially those who are presistent. Jesus was always available, Jesus
would always have time for them regardless of who they are and where they came
from.
The
centurion/soldier in our gospel came from a faraway place and certainly not a
follower of Jesus. But he knew Jesus and he heard of His miracles so he
ventured to see Him. And when he saw Jesus he asked him to cure his servant.
Jesus never had any second thought of helping the centurion; he even offered to
go his house to personally cure the centurion’s servant.
This gospel
episode invites us to reflect if we also make ourselves available to those who
are in need of our help. Often times we are not willing to help because it will
disturb us. It will affect our personal finances and schedules but it’s not every day that
we are asked for help.
The best
way to share our faith and to share Jesus is not though eloquent or bombastic preaching. The best way to share our faith and to share Jesus is when
we make ourselves available most especially to those who are in need. And to
those who can’t give back the help that we’ve given them.
Do you
take time to make yourself available to those who are in need of your help most
especially the poor? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
When
Jesus came down from the mountain, great crowds followed him. And then a leper
approached, did him homage, and said, “Lord, if you wish, you can make me
clean. He stretched out his hand, touched him, and said, “I will do it. Be made
clean. His leprosy was cleansed immediately. Then Jesus said to him, “See that
you tell no one, but go show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that
Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them.”
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Reflection:
Who is this
leaper who courageously approached Jesus to beg for His healing? We don’t know
but one thing is certain the leper is a believer of Jesus. He must have heard
about the healing prowess of Jesus. He must have been longing for an
opportunity to interact with Jesus for him to be healed also. That’s why when
the opportunity presented itself he took advantage of it by approaching Jesus.
Have you
also heard about the miracles that Jesus is capable of doing in your life? What
would you do now if you heard about it? Should you remain static and do nothing
or you become dynamic by hungering and thirsting for Jesus?
The leper
even if he was considered as an outcast had that dynamic attitude for he went
after Jesus. He did not allow his dreaded sickness to prevent him from having
that personal encounter with his savior and healer.
Do you want
to be healed from your sickness also? Whatever that sickness may be humbly ask
Jesus to heal you. For He would never refuse anyone who sincerely ask for his
healing. He will never refuse anyone who would humbly approach Him. – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus
said to his disciples: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord, will enter
the Kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in
heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in
your name? Did we not drive out demons in your name? Did we not do mighty deeds
in your name? Then I will declare to them solemnly ‘I never knew you. Depart
from me, you evildoers.’
“Everyone
who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who
built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and
buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And
everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be
like a fool who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and
the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely
ruined.”
When
Jesus finished these words, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he
taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.
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Reflection:
What
would ensure your entry to the kingdom of heaven when your time is up in this
world? It’s your faith built and anchored like a rock. What does this mean? It means
faith that is not in name only. It’s rather a faith that works and faith that
is lived so that others may benefit from it.
How easy
it is to us to say that I have faith, I am a Christian and a followers of
Jesus. But do you put substance to these solemn declarations and do you live
these pronouncements? If you do, then well and good but if you don’t yet, it’s
never too late to renew your faith and commitment to Jesus.
In every
hour of your life God gives you the chance for you to make alive your dormant
and sleeping faith. God wants you to do this so that you would become like the
wise man in the gospel. Who built his house around the rock which nobody could
move or destroy not even the strongest storm.
We all
face or will still be facing our own respective battles with the storms of life.
Do you know what would make you survive these storms? It’s your rock solid
faith in Jesus, faith that is not kept to oneself alone, it’s rather a faith
that is lived and shared.
How’s
your faith right now? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
57 Now
the time came for Elizabeth to be delivered, and she gave birth to a son. 58
And her neighbors and kinsfolk heard that the Lord had shown great mercy to
her, and they rejoiced with her. 59 And on the eighth day they came to
circumcise the child; and they would have named him Zechariah after his father,
60 but his mother said, "Not so; he shall be called John." 61 And
they said to her, "None of your kindred is called by this name." 62
And they made signs to his father, inquiring what he would have him called. 63
And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, "His name is John." And
they all marveled. 64 And immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue
loosed, and he spoke, blessing God. 65 And fear came on all their neighbors.
And all these things were talked about through all the hill country of Judea;
66 and all who heard them laid them up in their hearts, saying, "What then
will this child be?" For the hand of the Lord was with him. 80 And the
child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the wilderness till the
day of his manifestation to Israel.
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Reflection:
What does
a new born child brings to a family? It brings unfathomable joy and rejoicing.
This was how the couple Elizabeth and Zechariah felt during that time. The new
born child did not only bring joy to his parents, he also brought healing to
his father Zechariah who had problem with speaking.
Every
newly born child brings to you joy and healing also. Do you properly take care
of this child that is given to you as gift by God? Do you teach this child
about God and your faith? Do you teach this child to be humble and to live
simply? Do you bring this growing child to church for Holy Mass?
What can
we learn from the nativity of Saint John the Baptist? We learn that there is a
reward that awaits for parents who are faithful to the will of God. We learn
that when a child is taught about values of simplicity and humility the child
would grow up to be simple and humble also.
Just like
Jesus, John grew up as a simple and humble man, he grew up faithful to God’s
will for him. We cannot only attribute these virtues of John to God alone. Both
Elizabeth and Zechariah (his parents) played also an important role in
instilling him these virtues of humility and simplicity. Zechariah and
Elizabeth did not only teach John about simplicity and humility. Both of them
lived humility and simplicity also.
Do you
teach your child how to be humble and simple and do you live the virtues of
humility and simplicity? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus
said to his disciples: “Do not give what is holy to dogs, or throw your pearls
before swine, lest they trample them underfoot, and turn and tear you to
pieces. “Do to others whatever you would have them do to you. This is the Law
and the Prophets. “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the
road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many. How
narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find
it are few.”
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Reflection:
What is
the difference between a narrow gate and a wide gate? It’s hard to enter the
narrow gate, you may have to twist your body so that you could pass through it.
How about the wide gate? You simply can walk through it no twisting and no
discomfort whatsoever.
You may
ask, what is the relationship of the narrow gate with Jesus? The narrow gate is
the gateway to knowing Jesus. The narrow gate is the gateway toward having a
personal encounter with Jesus. In what way would this narrow gate lead you to
Jesus? This narrow gate will entail for you to make some sacrifices. It will
entail you to do things that you are not normally used of doing.
For
example, in fulfilling your Sunday Holy Mass obligation, in praying the Holy
Rosary or in reading the Holy Bible. You may not be comfortable of doing this because this requires effort
and time. Yet if you dare do this it will lead you to Jesus and it will lead
you to know more about the many truths concerning the church.
If you
want to find the true meaning and purpose of your life and if you want to know
Jesus more deeply. You have to pass thru this narrow gate for this is the way
that will lead you to a life of purpose with Jesus. Forget the wide gate which
consist of the many worldly enjoyment, it will lead you nowhere it will even
lead you to destruction.
Will you
dare enter this narrow gate? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus
said to his disciples: “Stop judging, that you may not be judged. For as you
judge, so will you be judged, and the measure with which you measure will be
measured out to you. Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye, but
do not perceive the wooden beam in your own eye? How can you say to your
brother ‘Let me remove that splinter from your eye, while the wooden beam is in
your eye? You hypocrite, remove the wooden beam from your eye first; then you
will see clearly to remove the splinter from your brother’s eye.
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Reflection:
What do
you get by judging others? Nothing except the accumulation of hatred in your
heart which if not corrected could even cause you sickness even death. What if
you will not judge or you are not quick to judge? There would be no hatred
within you! As such you will feel free, you will look younger and sickness will
not be your best friend.
We may
not know this but we are quick to judge others for the simple reason that we have
a very high regard of ourselves. And this is brought about by our feeling of
superiority towards others. But why do we feel superior towards others? When we
are all created by God as equals. Where
does this superiority feeling emanates?
We have
this feeling of superiority because God is not truly present within us. And God
is not a permanent dweller in our hearts. There’s a story of a woman who was a
regular fixture in church organization. But she was not well liked because she
was so judgmental and self-righteous. Are we not often times also judgmental
and self-righteous?
In our
gospel for this Monday we hear Jesus telling us to stop judging. Why? This is
for the reason that when we judge we already distance ourselves from that
person. We already create a wall that may permanently divide us from that
person. If this is so, how could we covert them? How could we let them feel the
love of Jesus? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
On that day, as
evening drew on, Jesus said to his disciples: “Let us cross to the other side.”
Leaving the crowd, they took Jesus with them in the boat just as he was. And
other boats were with him. A violent squall came up and waves were breaking
over the boat, so that it was already filling up. Jesus was in the stern,
asleep on a cushion. They woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care
that we are perishing?” He woke up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea,
“Quiet! Be still!” The wind ceased and there was great calm. Then he asked
them, “Why are you terrified? Do you not yet have faith?” They were filled with
great awe and said to one another “Who then is this whom even wind and sea
obey?
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Reflection:
There is a story of
a man who was so afraid of darkness. He feared darkness because he imagines
evil things coming out from it. For the same reason, when sleeping time comes
in the evening he tells his wife not to turn-off the light.
For many of us
evening or darkness depicts uncertainty, it registers fears in our hearts.
Notice when there’s a brownout in your community. Everyone would look for their
flashlights, candles or anything that could defeat darkness.
It was evening when
Jesus and His disciples were crossing to the other side of the lake. They were
in a boat and darkness pervades their environment, when out of the blue they
suddenly encountered a violent storm. All of them were running scared (who
wouldn’t be?) the fear of the violent storm coupled with darkness made them
momentarily forgot that Jesus was with them.
And then they
remembered that Jesus (the light of their lives and our lives too!) was with
them. He was soundly asleep, notwithstanding the violent storm, in the stern on a cushion. So they woke Him up and they asked Jesus for help. And right
in front of them Jesus rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Quiet! Be
still!” The wind ceased and there was great calm (Mark 4:39).
All of us pass thru
certain stretches of darkness and storms in our lives and we naturally fear it.
Many of us would want to avoid these stretches of darkness and storms. Yet we
cannot avoid it for these are part and parcel of our lives.
So what are we going
to do when we pass thru these episodes of storms and darkness? We always have
to remember that Jesus the light of our lives is always with us. We always have
to remember that no storms or darkness can break us down. For we have Jesus
walking with us and lighting our paths.
Are you passing
through a storm or darkness right now? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus
said to his disciples: “No one can serve two masters. He will either hate one
and love the other or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve
God and mammon.
“Therefore
I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink, or about
your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food and the body more
than clothing? Look at the birds in the sky; they do not sow or reap, they
gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are not you
more important than they? Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to
your life-span? Why are you anxious about clothes? Learn from the way the wild
flowers grow. They do not work or spin.
But I
tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendour was clothed like one of
them. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown
into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little
faith? So do not worry and say, ‘What are we to eat? or ‘What are we to drink?’
or ‘What are we to wear?’ All these things the pagans seek. Your heavenly
Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the Kingdom of God and his
righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides. Do not worry
about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself. Sufficient for a day is its
own evil.”
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Reflection:
What does
Jesus mean when He said that we need not worry for God will provide? Is He
telling us to simply lie down and we don’t do anything? Of course not! Yes
Jesus is telling us in the gospel that we should learn to trust in God. But Jesus
did not tell us to be lazy and just open our mouths because food will simply
fall down from heaven.
What we
need to do is we have to have faith and trust in Jesus. Yet we also have to
move and do something and in the process expect the good Lord to bless our
efforts. So its trusting Jesus and we reinforce our trust by our action and
then we leave it up all to the graciousness of the good Lord.
What
makes a meaningful life in this world? It’s a life focused first on God not a
life focused first on this world. When we fix first our attention on God we are
properly guided as we go on and live our lives in this world. We are not easily
tempted to do wrong for the very reason that God is our priority.
If God is
at the front seat we have nothing to worry for we will be able to handle
whatever trials that may come our way. We will certainly survive it splendidly for
the very reason that Jesus occupies the front seat of our lives.
Whom do
you seek first in your life right now? – Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus
said to his disciples: “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where
moth and decay destroy, and thieves break in and steal. But store up treasures
in heaven, where neither moth nor decay destroys, nor thieves break in and
steal. For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.
“The lamp
of the body is the eye. If your eye is sound, your whole body will be filled
with light; but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be in darkness. And if
the light in you is darkness, how great will the darkness be.”
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Reflection:
There’s a
story of a young bright man who declined every opportunity to get wealthy in favour
of serving God. After twenty years his batch had an alumni homecoming. Many of
his batch mates were already executives of private and government corporations.
And him? He
was still serving God. Compared to them
who were complaining of many sickness brought about by the pressure of this
world. His batch mates noticed his refreshing and healthy physical appearance.
When you
focus on God rather than this world and when you store up treasures for heaven
rather than this world. You will not only have good physical appearance you
will also have a healthy spiritual life. You will also have a close
relationship with Jesus.
Spiritual
health is the greatest wealth yet many of us are blinded by material riches
that we consider it our greatest wealth. What good would it do us if we have
accumulated all the wealth in this world if our spirits are in poor health? What
good will it do us if we gain all the wealth in this world if we cannot go to
heaven after our journey is over?
Whatever
we have in this world we will leave behind sooner or later or it may leave us
behind. Yet, whatever we have invested for God in this world will be our
passport to heaven to be with Jesus.
What are you
investing on right now? Are you still investing on the things of this world? –
Marino J. Dasmarinas
Jesus
said to his disciples: “In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think
that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them. Your
Father knows what you need before you ask him.
“This is
how you are to pray: ‘Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy
Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day
our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who
trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from
evil.’ “If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly Father will
forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive
your transgressions.”
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Reflection:
What is the
prayer that reaches the heart of God? It’s prayer that comes from the
heart. It a prayer made in the silence
of your heart. It could be a long or short prayer that comes straight from your
heart.
Jesus
gives us the perfect prayer called the Our Father. This is called the perfect prayer
because Jesus gave it to us. Jesus Himself taught us to pray it. Do we pray this with our hearts or we simply
pray it with our minds wandering elsewhere?
Recall when
you’re at Holy Mass, how do you pray the Our Father or the Lord’s Prayer? Do
you Pray it
with closed eyes or with open eyes? The best way to pray this perfect prayer is
with closed eyes. Because when you close
your eyes you shut yourself from any form of distraction.
Deep in your
heart you seek to connect with God, you hunger and thirst for this God. Most especially
when you pass through moments of loneliness and disillusionment. Why? Because God alone gives meaning to your
life.
Close
your eyes now and seek to connect with Jesus by silently praying the Our Father.
- Marino J. Dasmarinas
