So that no human being might boast before God… – 1 Corinthians 1:29

       No matter how happy or successful we are in this life, there are just times when we don’t know what to do or where to go. Then all of a sudden, out    of the blue, flashes of our yesteryears come to view — people we’ve been with, places we’ve been to, or some unforgettable scenarios of the glorious past.

       Human beings that we are, we all need to look back into our past as it is the gateway to the present and the future. We can never be what we are today without the past. That’s why it’s important that we take time to look back on who we were before becoming what we are today, to remind us of what we went through to become today’s citizens of the hour.

       Let us not allow fame and fortune to transform us into an overnight sensation. Let us always stay grounded and be humble all the time. After all, what we carry with us is just a tourist visa, with an expiry date. And like all the rest, we will have to say goodbye to this earthly life someday, bringing with us nothing to our grave. Dr. Henry L. Yu (henrio_md@yahoo.com)

Reflection: Jesus our Lord is the perfect image of true humilty. He showed this when He allowed Himself to be crucified to save us from eternal damnation.

Father, remind us always of Your brand of humility. Teach us to be humble all the time. All the while. All the way.

St. Jeanne Jugan, pray for us.

Paul assures us that we do not have to be the best debaters in the world to proclaim the Gospel and to defend it among the people. In fact, it is better that we are not the best because then we will attribute the inevitable triumph of the truth to God and not claim it for ourselves. It is important that we are faithful in speaking the truth in love; the Holy Spirit will do the rest.

26 Consider your own calling, brothers and sisters. Not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27 Rather, God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong, 28 and God chose the lowly and despised of the world, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who are something, 29 so that no human being might boast before God. 30 It is due to him that you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, as well as righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, “Whoever boasts, should boast in the Lord.”

R: Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.

12 Blessed the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he has chosen for his own inheritance. 13 From heaven the Lord looks down; he sees all mankind. (R) 18 But see, the eyes of the Lord are upon those who fear him, upon those who hope for his kindness, 19 to deliver them from death and preserve them in spite of famine. (R) 20 Our soul waits for the Lord, who is our help and our shield, 21 for in him our hearts rejoice; in his holy name we trust. (R)       

God does not demand that we change the world and achieve everything that He did not achieve during His ministry. He simply asks us to be faithful to the gifts and talents He has given us and to use them to the best of our abilities, both for ourselves and the work of the Kingdom of God. This is an eminently reasonable request on His part because all the good that we have originates from Him.

I give you a new commandment: love one another as I have loved you.

14 Jesus told his disciples this parable: “A man going on a journey called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them. 15 To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one — to each according to his ability. Then he went away. Immediately 16 the one who received five talents went and traded with them, and made another five. 17 Likewise, the one who received two made another two. 18 But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground and buried his master’s money. 19 After a long time the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them. 20 The one who had received five talents came forward bringing the additional five. He said, ‘Master, you gave me five talents. See, I have made five more.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.’ 22 Then the one who had received two talents also came forward and said, ‘Master, you gave me two talents. See, I have made two more.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.’ 24 Then the one who had received the one talent came forward and said, ‘Master, I knew you were a demanding person, harvesting where you did not plant and gathering where you did not scatter; 25 so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground. Here it is back.’ 26 His master said to him in reply, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant and gather where I did not scatter? 27 Should you not then have put my money in the bank so that I could have got it back with interest on my return? 28 Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten. 29 For to everyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. 30 And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.’”

think:  It is important that we are faithful in speaking the truth in love; the Holy Spirit will do the rest.

READ THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR Psalm 26-30

LIVING UP TO YOUR POTENTIAL

I remember receiving one report card in high school, after which my dad sat me down. It was clear he was not happy with my grades. There were a number of teachers who said that I was not as well-behaved as I should have been. So I thought I was going to get a lecture on respect and “being a good boy.” But I was wrong! He was not happy about my bad behavior but he was even more unhappy about what one of the teachers had written — that I was not living up to my potential with regard to the quality of work I was submitting. It was this that gained my father’s ire.

       Jesus addresses a similar thing in today’s parable. God has blessed us with talents and gifts and we should put them to good use. Admittedly, we cannot use all our gifts at the same time, so we have to be sensible when we assess ourselves in this regard. However, this is not an excuse to sit back and be lazy about using our gifts. They were given to us for a particular purpose; it is our responsibility to discover that purpose and put it into action.

       The dynamic of blessings building upon blessings is biblical. The more God sees us using our gifts well, the more He will add to them. If we do not use them well, then there is little probability that we will be blessed with more; in fact, it is more than likely that what we have will be taken away and given to someone who will put them to good use. To him who has much (and is using them well), more will be given, and to him who has little (and is not using them at all), even what he has will be taken away. Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

REFLECTION QUESTION: Are you using all the gifts that God has given you?

Holy Spirit, help me to use all the gifts and blessings that God has given me. Teach me to be grateful for them through the full and proper use of every gift He has given me.