BECAUSE OF LOVE

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.” – John 14:27

       Last year, my wife decided to resign from her job.

       She was actually working for a good company, with a good boss, and a good team. She was on the verge of a promotion and a salary increase.

       But still, she decided to be a stay-at-home mom to spend more time with our baby.

       Even if there were more offers after she expressed her resignation, she had inner peace.

       She was afraid, but she remained trusting — that God will work out everything.

         There are difficult decisions that we need to make in our life.

         But whatever decision we make, as long as it is done out of love and because of love, God’s peace will rest on us.

        So no need to be troubled or afraid. Just trust and just love, and surely, peace will reign. Paolo Galia (pgalia@gmail.com)

Reflection: Are all the things that you’re doing now done because of love?

Dear Lord, help me in my decisions. May they all be motivated by love so that Your peace will be upon me.

St. Margaret of Cortona, pray for us.

Paul continued his mission despite another brush with death. He returned to Antioch and shared with the community the joy of seeing people open their hearts to the faith. Joy is what keeps an evangelist going. The call of God is compelling, but seeing the fruit of one’s ministry is also a strong motivation. Let us remember to be grateful to Christ for using us in building His Kingdom.

19 In those days, some Jews from Antioch and Iconium arrived and won over the crowds. They stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead. 20 But when the disciples gathered around him, he got up and entered the city. On the following day he left with Barnabas for Derbe. 21 After they had proclaimed the good news to that city and made a considerable number of disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch. 22 They strengthened the spirits of the disciples and exhorted them to persevere in the faith, saying, “It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the Kingdom of God.” 23 They appointed presbyters for them in each Church and, with prayer and fasting, commended them to the Lord in whom they had put their faith. 24 Then they traveled through Pisidia and reached Pamphylia. 25 After proclaiming the word at Perga they went down to Attalia. 26 From there they sailed to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work they had now accomplished. 27 And when they arrived, they called the Church together and reported what God had done with them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. 28 Then they spent no little time with the disciples.

R: Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your kingdom.

10 Let all your works give you thanks, O Lord, and let your faithful ones bless you. 11 Let them discourse of the glory of your kingdom and speak of your might. (R) 12 Making known to men your might and the glorious splendor of your kingdom. 13 Your kingdom is a kingdom for all ages, and your dominion endures through all generations. (R) 21 May my mouth speak the praise of the Lord, and may all flesh bless his holy name forever and ever. (R)

Jesus affirmed in today’s Gospel that the “ruler of this world” has no more power over us. We have been freed from the powers of the world and sin. Let us rejoice that we are free to live as children of the light. This is at the heart of the Christian Gospel – we are no longer in darkness because of sin but we have been set free to live a full life as disciples of Jesus. May this bring great joy to our hearts.

Christ had to suffer and to rise from the dead, and so enter into his glory.

27 Jesus said to his disciples: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid. 28 You heard me tell you, ‘I am going away and I will come back to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father; for the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you this before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe. 30 I will no longer speak much with you, for the ruler of the world is coming. He has no power over me, 31 but the world must know that I love the Father and that I do just as the Father has commanded me.”

think: Where do you need Jesus’ peace the most?

Read the Bible in one year Joshua 17-20

T O D A Y’S BLESSING LIST

thank You, Lord, for: ______________________________________________________

OPENNESS

There is an ironic twist to the account of the First Reading. Paul, being a well-traveled man, a “salesman” of grand proportions, was not a stranger to the towns and cities mentioned. He had been there before as persecutor.

     However, he is back there as propagator par excellence of his newfound Christian faith. He came once before with rabid zeal; he now returns with zealous piety and faith.

         Do we need to remind ourselves that people do change?

    We religious and priests have a lot of experiences relating to different personalities. Those of us who started out young in seminaries are literal open books to one another.

       Many of us may have an open mind or, in a word, intelligent. We had many seminarians who were the epitome of that trait. Others could have an open heart, prayerful and pious to the extreme. We also had scores of them.

       But we all love those who, like Paul, were once a pain in the neck. Years after, we wake up to the realization that the quiet, shy and snarlish chap is now a fully functioning pastor some place or a fine lay man doing his role in society. They had more than just an open will. They had all three in various proportions and degrees.

        Open mind. Open heart. Open will. We need all three to allow grace to effect change in us.

         Ironically, these elements for effecting change, or “presencing” understood as learning from the emerging future, do not come from spiritual gurus, but from an economist, Otto Scharmer. Even people like Paul — you and me — can learn from others. Fr. Chito Dimaranan, SDB

----------- REFLECTION QUESTION -----------

Do you give room for grace to change the people closest to you? To change you?

Lord, grant me an open mind, an open heart, and an open will so that You can transform me from glory to glory. Amen.