Faith in Jesus

Scripture/Bible: As he entered Caper'na-um, a centurion came forward to him, beseeching him 6 and saying, "Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, in terrible distress." 7 And he said to him, "I will come and heal him." 8 But the centurion answered him, "Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof; but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I am a man under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my slave, 'Do this,' and he does it." 10 When Jesus heard him, he marveled, and said to those who followed him, "Truly, I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such faith. 11 I tell you, many will come from east and west and sit at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, 12 while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness; there men will weep and gnash their teeth." 13 And to the centurion Jesus said, "Go; be it done for you as you have believed." And the servant was healed at that very moment.  Matt 8:5-13

Reflection:  We all hold some job or the other, if not then we may have our own businesses. Even if we are sick or handicapped we still are able to do some work or the other.  The least we can do by way of labor, is pray.

Work either helps us grow or can make us stagnant, some shrivel up or even become worse in the labor they undertake.  

The human being creatively expresses through his daily work and may learn from it things that are good for his progress. They, more so, learn to relate with one another and their superiors and friends through their various interactions in the work place.

No matter how talented one may be, one of the chief qualities one carries and learns is the ethics of life; sound character, the aspect of charity and endurance, bearing up with those colleagues who are difficult to interact with, etc.   

All these action are made beautiful, if it begins with the creator and ends with seeking the glory of him who makes it possible for us to be perfected in our surroundings.  If only we knew how to draw from his presence the life, which is only him and give it to others according to the capacity of the vessel we are.

In the Gospel we have a beautiful example of learning from one’s work, which is then made beautiful in the holy presence of God:

The centurion has through his daily work learnt at least one thing and that is the power of human words to command and bring to fruition what it means.  At the same time we see in his interaction with Jesus, the limitation he must have seen in his own words to accomplish or help a person in distress.

How often we may have heard that we need to reach out to people who are suffering and in pain, just as Jesus did and went home carrying a guilt, because we have realized that somewhere deep down it is not possible in our hands, no matter how powerful we may be.

The faith of the centurion is also the absence of faith in himself and in  his own authority and might. It is a faith in Jesus who is able to accomplish all things beautifully and in his time.

Prayer:  Lord, help me not to be wise in my own eyes and teach me to fear you and turn away from evil.  So that It may be healing to my flesh and refreshment to my bones. (Cfr.Prov 3:7-8)

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

His Commandment

Scripture/Bible:   And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, "Which commandment is the first of all?" 29 Jesus answered, "The first is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30 and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these." 32 And the scribe said to him, "You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that he is one, and there is no other but he; 33 and to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength, and to love one's neighbor as oneself, is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices." 34 And when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God." And after that no one dared to ask him any question. Mark 12:28-34

Reflection:  Confidence to trust someone seems so easy to the simple but rarely to the proud. 

There must have been many scribes around the place and one of them turns to Jesus and asks: "Which commandment is the first of all?"

Christ Jesus is indeed the right person to ask the most difficult questions of life, about right teachings and the correct way of life?

Why do people ask questions and why should they ask the right person? Generally speaking, people ask in order that they may learn and in learning they find that they grow. Intellect, if fed with the right knowledge, grows in the right direction.

If one thought that one grows only or though either of these; eating, drinking, playing or working then one has missed the essential aspect of life. 

Learning, through the development of the mind, is the best among the growth processes we can think of.  And of all learning, the learning of character is primary; to love and respect.

If we do not learn from our many learning’s the source of our origin and learn not how to love him with all our mind, heart, soul and strength then what use is it? We will miss out on learning and putting into practice the greatest virtue called ‘humility’ which is essential for our survival, which includes the collective survival of the human race, even unto eternity.

The Scribe absorbed the truth which Jesus teaches, well and his mind was quite open to what Jesus had to say. But did he lack that one thing, viz. observance of what he knew to be the truth?

Prayer: “With my whole heart I seek thee; let me not wander from thy commandments! I have laid up thy word in my heart, that I might not sin against thee.” Ps 119:10-11

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Teach us to pray

Scripture: He was praying in a certain place, and when he ceased, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples." 2 And he said to them, "When you pray, say: "Father, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread; 4 and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us; and lead us not into temptation." Luke 11:1-4

Reflection: A hallmark of a good dedicated disciple is to follow in the footsteps of the master.  When inviting them he did not ask them to follow his values or his teachings but to follow him. Christ has proved himself, to the cross, as an example to emulate and follow.

You don’t like prayer, no problem, the disciple too were no better in following Christ. But seeing Jesus pray they wanted to make some progress; at least a beginning. The Lord’s Prayer is the beginning of all prayer. He taught them to pray exactly as they desired but not precisely the way John taught them did he teach them.  To address God as Father was unique to the Son who reveals Him to us.

A child that grows under the Fatherhood of God and with the grace of Jesus under the guidance of the Holy Spirit progresses well unto eternity. With the love of the Father with us, and by inviting his Kingdom and seeking his will, one is building on earth the progressing ladder to heaven.

Prayer:  Lord, may we who know your prayer progress well with help from the Holy Spirit and your grace, under the Fatherhood of God.

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us