In my life, I have seen mountains move—from a fatal disease to getting miraculously healed; to my mountain of debts that are being managed and paid off; from the mountains of day-to-day responsibilities to the many co-leaders and co-servants I’m blessed with—those who share the burden of running large organizations and juggling multiple tasks.

But here’s what’s more amazing. These things, and more, happen to me because of God. Because if it were just me, these could not have happened at all.

It’s all by His pure grace. Yet, I should boldly say that I cooperated, too, with His grace. Because I believed and continue to believe, my faith is the mustard seed that God builds upon.

So, I continue to live my life every day, holding on tight to my seed of faith and moving my mountains—all these because of Him. 

Alvin Barcelona (apb_ayo@yahoo.com)

reflect

Are you facing “mountains”? Have faith. You can and will move them with God.

Dear God, I believe that even with my mustard seed of faith, we will continue moving mountains. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Saint Dominic, priest, pray for us.

Each of us needs a vision for our lives; otherwise, we risk being swayed by every passing trend and societal whim. When we have a clear vision of how we will serve the Lord, we can navigate life’s storms while remaining anchored in truth, steadily guided toward the path of eternal life. Understanding God’s will for us is one of the most empowering realities we can embrace.

¹² Are you not from eternity, O Lord, my holy God, immortal? O Lord, you have marked him for judgment, O Rock, you have readied him for punishment! ¹³ Too pure are your eyes to look upon evil, and the sight of misery you cannot endure. Why, then, do you gaze on the faithless in silence while the wicked man devours one more just than himself? 14 You have made man like the fish of the sea, like creeping things without a ruler. ¹⁵ He brings them all up with his hook, he hauls them away with his net, he gathers them in his seine; and so he rejoices and exults. ¹⁶ Therefore he sacrifices to his net, and burns incense to his seine; for thanks to them his portion is generous, and his repast sumptuous. ¹⁷ Shall he, then, keep on brandishing his sword to slay peoples without mercy? ^2:1 I will stand at my guard post, and station myself upon the rampart, and keep watch to see what he will say to me, and what answer he will give to my complaint. ² Then the Lord answered me and said: Write down the vision clearly upon the tablets, so that one can read it readily. ³ For the vision still has its time, presses on to fulfillment, and will not disappoint; if it delays, wait for it, it will surely come, it will not be late. ⁴ The rash man has no integrity; but the just man, because of his faith, shall live.

Responsorial Psalm | Psalm 9:8-9, 10-11, 12-13 (or Psalm 77:12-13, 14-15, 16. 21)

R: You forsake not those who seek you, O Lord.

⁸ The Lord sits enthroned forever; he has set up his throne for judgment. ⁹ He judges the world with justice; he governs the peoples with equity. (R) ¹⁰ The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of distress. ¹¹ They trust in you who cherish your name, for you forsake not those who seek you, O Lord. (R) ¹² Sing praise to the Lord enthroned in Zion; proclaim among the nations his deeds; ¹³ for the avenger of blood has remembered; he has not forgotten the cry of the poor. (R) 

Gospel | Matthew 17:14-20 (or Matthew 16:24-28)

Teresa Benedicta of the Cross perished in the Nazi concentration camps during World War II. Born into a Jewish family, she later converted to Christianity and became a Carmelite nun. 

A devoted scholar, she embraced phenomenology and made significant contributions to its development. A woman of unwavering conviction, she stands as a lasting example of what it means to remain faithful to one’s principles, regardless of the cost.

Gospel Acclamation

Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death and brought life to light through the Gospel.

¹⁴ A man came up to Jesus, knelt down before him, ¹⁵ and said, “Lord, have pity on my son, who is a lunatic and suffers severely; often he falls into fire, and often into water. ¹⁶ I brought him to your disciples, but they could not cure him.” ¹⁷ Jesus said in reply, “O faithless and perverse generation, how long will I be with you? How long will I endure you? Bring the boy here to me.” ¹⁸ Jesus rebuked him and the demon came out of him, and from that hour the boy was cured. ¹⁹ Then the disciples approached Jesus in private and said, “Why could we not drive it out?” ²⁰ He said to them, “Because of your little faith. Amen, I say to you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

Reflect

How much has your faith in the Lord grown?

What risks are you willing to take for the sake of your faith in Him?

Read the Bible in one year! Read 2 MACCABEES 1 - 2 today.

How we measure faith is somewhat perplexing. Just when we think we know the answer, another variable pops into our calculations and we are foiled once again. It is like watching the greyhound races where, no matter how many races you watch, the dogs will never catch their prey because it is designed to be that way. If the dog ever caught the prey, it would stop running and there would be no race to watch. Perhaps faith belongs to this sort of category of things—that is, it is better not to fully grasp it, or we will lose it altogether.

Jesus describes faith with the image of a seed. A seed is something with enormous potential. Given the right conditions and care, it can grow into a great tree. However, to do this, a seed must totally lose its form and original shape so it can develop and fulfill its full potential.

Faith is similar to this. At any particular point in our lives, the seed of faith is free to develop and change us according to our will. Freewill is an important ingredient here. We can choose to allow our lives to move down the road of faith, or we can cling to what we know and can control, rather than giving the Holy Spirit free rein over our lives. With the Holy Spirit, anything is possible. If we confine ourselves to our own abilities and talents, we will be left to wonder, “What might have been the case with my life if . . .?”

In challenging His disciples to grow in their faith, Jesus does not so much as chastise them for doing something wrong—rather, He opens up greater possibilities to them, if they allow faith in God to take a more prominent role in their lives than it does at the moment. 

Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL

reflection questions

What role does faith play in your life? Are you satisfied with the level of faith that you have at the moment? How are you allowing your faith to grow and develop?

Holy Spirit, every day, You offer me opportunities to grow in my faith. You never cease to be generous with Your gifts. Help me to put away my fears and learn to entrust my life more fully to God. Amen.

Today, I pray for: ______________________________________