Community Word: Jesus Christ inspires us to have unwavering faith.
Order: “Take as your norm…the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.”(2Tim 1:13)
Reflection:
Our community word for the month is,Jesus Christ inspires us to have unwavering faith. In Hebrews 12:2, it says, “Jesus is the author and the finisher of our faith.” As the author of faith, Jesus is the beginner of faith, the leader and the reason behind it all. Faith begins in Christ; faith does not become ours until it is given to us by God. Without Christ, faith would not exist.
Jesus is the finisher of faith, the One who has in His own human and divine nature raised faith to its perfection and set before us the highest example of faith. He leads by example, in word and in deed, teaching us how to trust God with confidence and patience as He did while He was here on earth. To this day, Jesus continues in the work of faith inspiring us with strength and grace in order to be victorious in all our trials and difficulties. Let His suffering and death, His merits and glories, and His intercession continue to motivate us to follow hard after Him. He will never fail us.
How can we show that we have unwavering faith?
27th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Theme: We have an unwavering faith when we bear our share of hardship for the Gospel.
Reflecting on the lives of the saints, one of the first things we might notice is that they were not comfortable. They embraced the cross and the hardships that came with it. Ever since, our human tendency is to seek pleasure and avoid pain. The saints knew better, and if we are wise and take our faith seriously, we will heed the call of “dying to self,” embracing our little sacrifices daily.
The world is calling us to comfort and self-indulgence; Jesus calls us to take up our cross daily and seek to follow His footsteps.In turning away from worldly comforts, we make room in our hearts for God and for our brothers and sisters.St. Paul calls us to “bear our share of hardship for the Gospel” and not to give in to fear of suffering. Jesus points us to the fulfillment of our faith in His promise: “For the vision has its time….it will surely come, it will not be late,” (Hab 2:3).
28th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Theme: We have an unwavering faith when we are grateful for God’s kindness.
We have so much to be grateful for and yet, quite often, we become more focused on our problems than on the countless blessings that God bestows on us. Even in the midst of life’s darkest moments, there is much that the soul can find to be grateful about. St. Paul encourages us to give thanks in all circumstances (cf. 1 Thes 5:18). He also speaks frequently of gratitude in his letter from prison – “Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught abounding in thanksgiving,” (Col 2: 6 – 7).
It is good to keep our eyes on the innumerable blessings, gifts and graces that God gives us, to see them, to name them and to be joyful in them. The more we acknowledge them, the more we grow in gratitude. The more we are grateful, the more our faith remains to be unwavering. A steadfast faith brings us to God’s promise, that as we “…live with him…he remains faithful” to us (2 Tim 2:11-13).
29th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Theme: We have an unwavering faith when we meditate on God’s word and persevere in prayer.
When we are in the habit of meditating on God’s word in the scriptures we would be astonished at how old familiar verses acquire new meaning, which practically leads us to whole new insights that can guide our actions and put us in the right path. As St. Paul wrote to the Hebrews, let us be reminded that the “word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to the dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges thoughts and attitudes of the heart,” (Hb 4:12-13). One saint also said, “God’s word is eternal, always new while it is old. It will always be relevant and engage us in a meaningful way at any moment.”
God’s word and all His promises inspire us to persevere in prayer and to have a strong faith. When we know the mind of God in His word, we begin to pray the mind of God in our prayer. Then we will surely have a clear direction in our life. When we delight in the word of God and meditate on it daily, we will experience His promise expressed in Psalm 121:8, “The Lord will guard your coming and going, both now and forever.”
30thSunday in Ordinary Time
Theme: We have an unwavering faith when we humbly acknowledge our sinfulness and depend on God’s mercy.
Growing in Christian maturity and following the path of righteousness, there will be times when we succumb to temptation. We stumble and fall into sin because of our “fallen nature.” If we are not on guard against the pull of the world, we may be led to go against the commandments of God. But before sin and disobedience, there is always God’s mercy waiting for us. God is faithful and true. He never rescinds His promise of salvation. We are the unfaithful ones, but God is our God of second chances. He waits for us to return and be reconciled with Him again. We only need to humble ourselves, accept our sinfulness, cry out to God for mercy and seek for His forgiveness. For He is a forgiving, compassionate and merciful Father – “The Lord is close to the broken-hearted; and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.” (Ps 34:19). Therefore, we must not despair at all or hide our sins because salvation has already been secured.
