How Do We Follow

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

 

Where is Your Focus

"Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit." Matthew 15:13-14

Reflection:

How true, if we are blind to the ways of God, how then can we lead others to Him. We would end up falling on our faces or as scripture says, fall into a pit.

God knows all that he has put on this earth, us included. So when satan, puts his own seeds out there, God's going to uproot them. But we all too often forget that God is far more powerful than evil. Evil is a nuisance to God, and rightly so.

Just think for a few minutes about situations that are not good. Do we sense unease at those times? How about a Christian that we know serves the Lord as a lay person, and shows in all outward appearances a devout person, but we witness during Mass an act of evil toward another. I've witnessed this phenomena, that is why I am speaking of it. We are not to judge another, it is for God to do so. And this is where he uproots the plants that are not His. This is why Jesus warns of the blind leading the blind. If we are like this one person that acts outwardly as a Christian, yet inwardly they do acts of evil. Then we need to really do some soul searching and major cleansing of our hearts.

Are we plants that are of God? Or are we plants that will be uprooted? As Christians are we also blind guides leading others that are blind. Going nowhere but into the pit.

Like anything in this life, we have choices. What's yours!

Happy Feast Day

his heart was moved with pity for them, and he cured their sick. Matthew 14:14

Reflection:

Jesus' heart was moved with pity for the crowd, so he cured their sick. What a wonderful Lord we have. He heard of the death of John the Baptist, and so did all those who followed after Jesus. I would think the crowd was there for Jesus, to give him comfort and solace for the loss of a friend, a brethren.

But Jesus, the one who is meek and humble of heart was moved with pity for those who are sick, and went about curing them. He didn't think about the loss and his desire to be alone, to grieve. Instead he gave more of himself. He poured himself out upon the crowd, feeding them, nourishing their souls with words of wisdom, as well as feeding their bodies with one of the greatest miracles to be witnessed.

We are shown a special gift from Jesus, one of compassion and love. From his loss of a friend, he shows us how to reach out and give to one another. He shows us how to not give in to our selfishness when we hurt. To be thankful for what God has given us in our life. Jesus shows us so many things in his teachings, but love is always the one that stands out.

No foul language should come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for needed edification, that it may impart grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the holy Spirit of God, with which you were sealed for the day of redemption. All bitterness, fury, anger, shouting, and reviling must be removed from you, along with all malice. (And) be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another as God has forgiven you in Christ. Ephesians 4:29-32

Reflection:

It's hard not to walk down a street without hearing a profanity. But unfortunately we hear it come from the television constantly. This media has shown us everything that we are to guard against. We get anything from swears to skimpy outfits. Then to see an act between a man and a woman, that should be a reverent moment between the two, shown for all to see. What will be next?

Today's reading from the Liturgy of Hours gives us what to watch out for. What we hear from others often affects us just as much as if we were to say it ourselves. You hang around someone who swears on a daily basis and you might find yourself picking up the habit too. This is what we are to guard ourselves against. Just like we are to remove all that causes us to hurt ourselves or another. After all Jesus died forgiving us. Yet we have hardened ourselves so much that we are angry, bitter and malicious toward one another and not at all forgiving.

Should anyone say something to us that we end up giving them a cold shoulder, or the silent treatment, then we are not very forgiving or have love in our hearts for our neighbors. Do we even learn when we go through trials that point out our flaws, and do we take the steps to correct them. Remember on the cross the one who forgave those who put him there, shouldn't we be able to do this while we are walking on this earth.