Take Up Your Cross and Follow Me

In this Sunday’s gospel, Jesus says “Whoever who wishes to come after me must deny

himself, take up his cross and follow me”. This poses a great challenge, especially for us Christians since it is a clear reminder from Christ himself how the cross is essentially part of or lives as faithful and followers of the Lord.

You may ask, but what is the cross really all about?

Well, we may define the cross in so many different ways. During the time of Jesus, it is the greatest persecution; the instrument for the capital punishment of death for a criminal. It is like the silya elektrika during that time. And so it is not surprising that still, even Christians attributes the meaning of the cross to what is painful, or what causes death. You may consider it as poverty, a burden like sickness, a tragedy, or sorrow. It is far away from our own idea of what is pleasing, something that we dare not to have or experience, and yet here comes Christ asking us to take up our cross and follow Him! You may also ask, is Christ being sadistic here or what? Or simply ask why, what for?

Let us remember that Christ Jesus himself was not spared from the cross himself. He carried the cross’ burden even if He does not deserve it. He carried the cross in silence, uncomplaining, embracing it even- for the sake of our salvation. And so Christ gave a new meaning to the cross. More than poverty, pain, sorrow and death, it means denying of oneself for the sake of someone you love. It means becoming selfless, to lose one’s life for other’s sake. And so we can say that the cross can actually be our own selves, when we are being too selfish, pre-occupied with our own concerns, when what we only care about is me, myself and I. When we choose ourselves, than God, we become our own heavy cross, which burdens us and preventing us to follow Christ.

And so today, Christ challenges us to do the same: to give our very selves to others and to love big time; yes, to love even the unlovable. But of course, Christ is very realistic about it, it is not easy. Remember the when He was in Gethsemane; He himself showed some hesitation. But in the end, He willingly accepted it as the will of His Father. Today, we look up to the cross not a symbol of persecution like what it is really meant to be, but a symbol of Christ’s love and salvation, of Him giving up His life so that we may live. . It takes a lot of courage and great love for one to just what Christ did, and so we ask for the same grace of courage and great love so that we may be able to take up our own cross and follow him

So are you ready to take up your cross?

How to Know God's Will?

Q: When could we actually know that God is talking to us? What could be the possible signs? How can we know God's plan[will] for us? - Lucky D.

Lucky,
This is such a tough question, but reading this article sure is enlightening, so im sharing this here. I hope this will help answer your questions. - TJ
***
As Christians we are called to do God’s will. But how do we know what God wants us to do? Does he want me to go to pursue graduate studies or embark on an alternative career like teaching? Does he want me to date now or wait? Am I cut out for religious life or married life? How do we know what God’s will is? Do we just pray, and he’ll tell us? I doubt anyone of us has heard the audible voice of God. How does he tell us what to do?
When called to make a decision, many pray and ask for a sign. The problem with this is that we set the conditions for the sign. If what we want is something we so much desire, we may ask for an easy sign. And if what is to be decided is something tough - like deciding on my vocation - I may ask for an equally tough sign.

Some ask for God’s guidance but do not really try to discern what God has to tell him through the daily events in his life. Some of us just do not know how to read the signposts along the way. Hence, we sometimes end up missing the point of our lives.

So how do know God’s will and not just try to feel it (like Existentialists?)

There are Five principles in determining God’s Will.

#1. Scripture
God guides us through daily meditation of scriptures. When we pray with Scriptures, God’s word somehow comes across us in a very personal way. His words are situated in our very own context. Hence, his message, although universal, is at the same time particularized in my very own context. Meditation on the daily gospel and going to the Eucharist daily are great venues through which God can share with us His thoughts and desires in a very personal way.

#2. Godly Wisdom
Wisdom is “Knowledge Righteously Applied.” You can have all the Bible Knowledge possible, and decide not to use it. Satan knows the Bible better than you do, but he obviously does not follow its teaching. You have to take God’s word and apply it in your life.

With wisdom, you also will be able to determine what to do when faced with two Biblical options. Should I go to college or go to Africa and be a missionary? Wisdom will be able to take the knowledge of the Bible and apply it to your life situation.

#3. Godly Counsel (Teaching, Training and Equipping)
God did not create us to be alone. He created us in fellowship with one another. He set up the family so that the parents can teach, train and equip the children how to worship and serve God. He placed the pastor and the elders to do the same in the church. He gave us other brothers and sisters to teach us how to live more Biblically. He gave us the body of believers. Godly Counsel can help us know God’s will more.

#4. Open Doors
If God wants you to go in a certain direction he will open doors for you. Or he will close certain doors. But be wary, Satan can open doors too. You must use Godly Wisdom, Godly Counsel and the Bible to determine who opened that door.

#5. Peace of Heart
This principle is last and purposely so. If you are where God wants you to be, no matter how stressful it might be, you will have an inner peace about it. But, be warned, too many Christians use this as the only determiner of God’s will. If you only use this, you are basically only doing what you feel, and what gives you peace. This is not the peace that God gives. It’s a wrongful peace that we get in doing what we want. This peace is false and can last for a long time, but it will eventually fade.

Some might think that this process of determining God’s will is too much like a check list and takes faith out of the picture. But God is the one who gave us the Bible, he is the one who tell us to pray and ask for wisdom, he is the one who gave us parents, the church to teach us what to do and how to live and he is the one who give us the possibility of peace. He gave us all these things to grow our faith. Having greater faith is not knowing less so that you can have more to believe in. But greater faith is knowing the source of that faith even more.

To Discern God’s Will better you must Know God more. So go out and study your Bible, ask for wisdom, seek learning from parents, church and other believers. Know God more and you will better know what his will for you.

Weyms Sanchez, SJ @ 8/06/2006 09:45:00
Reprinted from heswitakami.blogspot.com

Jesus Walks on Water

10 August 2008. 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Matthew 14, 22-33 Faith: Jesus Walks on Water

It seems that the contemporary world of today is in dire need of security, which brings us anxiety and restlessness within. We are constantly anxious of what the future holds, so that most of you may agree and most self-help gurus will tell us: plan and take charge of your life!

The night Pope John Paul II was elected as new pope; his first words were “Do not be afraid”. In his book Crossing the Threshold of Hope, the Pope said that Christ sensed and in fact had known that we are anxious people. That we are afraid, so that He kept addressing this invitation many times in the gospels, when he said “Courage! It is I; don’t be afraid.”

Today once again we have heard how his disciples were terrified themselves perhaps because of the wind that was against them, and found consolation only when they recognized Christ and heard His words “Do not be afraid”. You may ask, of what should we not be afraid? The pope answered that we should not fear the truth about ourselves: our own sinfulness and unworthiness. This is what Peter discovered himself when Christ called him so that he said to Jesus, “Depart from me Lord, for I am a sinful man” And Christ answered him the same words, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men”. He knows our anxiety about our own selves and still He comes and continuously invites us to take courage, “Do not be afraid!”

Today we too are invited to take courage and trust in His words of consolation. When we are being tossed and buffeted by the harsh winds in life. When we feel lacking of security. When we do not recognize Him working in our lives, let us take comfort in His words, “Do not be afraid!”

Father we thank you for your words of consolation and invitation for us to take courage! Teach us to trust you and be not afraid to open up and respond generously to your loving will.

St. Iggy, the Canon Ball Saint

The Cannon ball Saint
or How a Skirt-Chasing, Dice-Throwing and Vain Spanish Courtier Who Walked with a Limp Finally Got a Halo
Feast day: July 31

St. Ignatius of Loyola had the rare distinction in the whole Christendom of being the only saint who was "cannonized" first before he was beatified. The story went that when the Spanish army stationed at a fortress in Pamplona, outnumbered by the French, was ready to retreat and accept a humiliating defeat, this swaggering son of a noble family convinced his captain to fight the invaders to death. As Lady Luck (or was it Madame Misfortune?) had had enough of Spanish bravado, she caused a careening cannon ball to crash and crush Iggy's leg.
The poor fellow was knocked out of his senses and he suddenly found himself upon waking up being treated like a lady by French soldiers who carried him home in a hammock instead of imprisoning him or torturing him with bad French jokes.

After a crude and we must say unhygienic "operation" on his leg so he could resume his groovy dance steps in court soirees, Iggy boy was bedbound and he recuperated in his brother's house. He couldn't go out for a drinking and gambling session. He couldn't wear his armor breastplate to engage his friends into a real Ragnarok match. And since this was a time when sending SMS texts and Friendster were not yet in vogue, the dashing and dashed soldier quickly got bored. He asked for copies of earlier versions of The Lord of the Rings and Mills and Boons novels but his sister-in-law kept none of these at home. Instead she handed him two boring books: The Life of Christ and Lives of Saints. He grumbly grabbed the books and started reading. He became feverish with excitement and started dreaming of going to faraway places and imitating the saints and following Christ. And then his desire of pursuing a royal relationship with a hitherto nameless lass and of playing knight to damsels-in-distress left him dry.

Meanwhile, since his leg was restored but did not heal, he requested that it be recast. The doctors told him that he could die in the process but he was determined to have it done. He underwent second operation, even without anesthesia, because he did not want to walk with a limp. Vanity of vanities says Qoheleth! It seemed however, that Sts. Peter and Paul, whose twin anniversary celebration coincided with the day of his operation (June 29), wanted him to join Jesus' army, Iggy's health turned for the better and he was able to walk, albeit, still with a little limp. From then on he bowed to live a life of poverty and purity, become a monk and a missionary to Jerusalem. And the rest is, you know, history...

Ignatius became the founder and the first superior general of the largest male-only congregation in the world. But that is getting ahead already. He suffered many hardships, sufferings and persecution. He even at one point became suicidal. But there was really no stopping this Basque from pursuing what he put his whole heart and mind into: conquer the world and save souls for the Greater Glory of God!

Article courtesy of We Sinners and Saints Blog.
Thanks to Sch. Joel Liwanag, SJ for the pictures.

Journal # 3: Tubig ng Buhay

Nakalilinis, nakatatangal ng uhaw, nakapagpapanibago…yan ang dulot ng Sakramento ng Binyag. Dahil sa sakramentong ito, tayo ay nagiging kabahagi ng sambayanan ng Diyos at nagiging tagapagmana ng Kanyang kaharian. Nakikiisa tayo sa halimbawa ni Kristo, nang Siya mismo ay bininyagan sa pamamagitan ni San Juan Bautista.

Sa karanasan natin bilang mga Pilipino, ang binyag ay karaniwang isang malaking selebrasyon at pagtitipon. Nariyan na ang pagkakaroon ng magarbong handaan, may pakimkim sa Ninong at Ninang, at gaya nga ng sinabi ni Ginoong Gabe Mercado sa dokumentrayong ating pinanoood ay, may pa-proxy-proxy pa!

Ngunit,higit pa sa magarbong handaan, ang Sakramento ng Binyag ay sadya ngang napakahalaga sa buhay nating mga Kristiyano. Sa pamamagitan ng sakramentong ito, tayo ay nanunumbalik sa piling ng Diyos, at muling nakikiisa sa Kanya.

Nakakalinis….
Sapagkat, sa pamamagitan nito, ay nalilinis ang bahid sa atin ng “Original Sin”, na siyang dahilan ng ating pagkakawalay sa Diyos, noong sinauna pa man sa pamamagitan ni Eba at Adan.

Nakakatangal ng Uhaw…
Sa pamamagaitan ng sakramentong ito, napupunan ang ating pagkauhaw sa Diyos na siyang lumikha sa atin, sapagkat gaya ng sabi ni Kristo, siya ang "Tubig ng Buhay".

Nakakapanibago...
Sa pamamagitan ng sakramentong ito, tayo ay napapanibago, isinisilang muli o born again. Sa pagmamahal ng Diyos at sa pamamagitan ng Kanyang grasya, tayo ay inihahango niya sa pagkalugmok dulot ng kasalanan sa pamamagitan ng sakramento ng Binyag.

Ngunit, hindi natatapos sa selebrasyon, handaan at ritwal ang ating pagkaka-binyag. Bilang binyagan, tayo ay may pananagutan. Kailangan nating “Magpakatotoo” o “Magpatotoo”, na tayo ay nga ay mga binyagan, sapagkat bilang mga Kristiyano, ito ay may kaakibat na pananagutan. Ito ay ang pagsasabuhay at pagsunod kay Kristo, pagkakaroo ng masiglang buhay panalangin, di lang sa sarili kundi para sa iba at panghuli ay ang pananagutan na maglingkod sa kapwa tao lalo na sa mga mahihirap.

Gabay sa Pagninilay:

• Balikan ang mga natutunan at bagong kaalaman ukol sa Sakramento ng Binyag. Ano sa mga bagong kaalaman na ito ang pinaka-tumatak sa iyo? Bakit?
• Kumusta ang iyong pagpapakatotoo bilang isang bininyagan? Sa puntong ito ng iyong buhay, masasabi mo bang ‘nagpapakatotoo’ ka bilang isang Binyagan? Kumusta ang iyong pagsasabuhay kay Kristo? Ang iyong buhay panalangin? Ang pagtulong sa iyong kapwa?
• Marahil, madalas hindi natin nabibigyang halaga ang ating pagkakabinyag. Nagyong, natalakay na natin ang kahalagahan nito, maaring sumulat ka ng isang panalangin ng pasasalamat sa Diyos sa grasyang ito sa iyo.
• Makakatulong sa iyo kung isusulat mo ang iyong panalangin sa iyong prayer journal Maaring itala mo lahat dito ang iyong naramdaman at ang imahe ng Diyos na iyong nakita matapos ang iyong pagdarasal.

Reference: Ang Tubig ng Buhay, Jesuit Communications Foundation, Inc. 2008

Journal # 2: The Parable of the Elder Brother

YOU are the younger brother.
JESUS, is your elder brother who gave up his life and left a trail of light for us so that we may find our way back home.

Even now, your father is waiting for you.

Thanks to Jesus, our Elder Brother, wherever we find ourselves in this world, there will always be light because Jesus, our Elder Brother, has been there.

Thanks to Him, our Elder Brother, God's first born, no place is so far or so dark that it falls beyond the love of God. Its time to go home. [1]

Points of Reflection:

• Go back to the story of the Parable of the Elder Brother. What struck you most in the story? What did you feel after hearing the story?
• Now, look into your own life, how is your relationship with your Elder Brother, Jesus? Had there been times when you somehow felt you are in the shoes of the younger brother? Bring this into prayer.
• How about your family? How's your relationship to your parents? To your siblings being an elder or younger brother/sister? The Elder Brother gave a perfect example how we must relate and show our love to our families. Are you willing enough to follow his example? If not what prevents you? Perhaps you may want to spend some time reflecting over these points in personal prayer.
• It is helpful to keep track of our prayer experiences by keeping a prayer journal. Note down all your feelings, significant movements, and the image of God you met after the prayer period.

"Wherever I go, I will leave a lighted candle. So even if I don't find him, he will know I've been there. Should he get lost, he will find a trail of light that can lead him back home."

- Elder Brother

____________________________

[1] Go, Johnny C., SJ, The Parable of the Elder Brother, Jesuit Communications Foundation, Inc., 2006.

Good News Naman Please!

6 July 2008 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Zechariah 9, 9-10; Psalm 145; Romans 8, 9-13; Matthew 11, 2-30

25 At that time Jesus said in reply, “I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike. 26 Yes, Father, such has been your gracious will. 27 All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him. 28 “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”

It’s been scary to read the newspaper lately. For how many days, it was all bad news. The recent typhoon Frank left the country devastated, killing hundreds of people and hundreds more homeless. World oil price soars to $145 a barrel last Thursday, the highest in history and gone up to more than 50% than its price last year. Last month, our inflation [1] rate hit 11.4%, the highest in 14 years. From one bad news to another (well, at least thanks to Pacquiao, who somehow made us forget the bad news for a little while) you may wonder, how long this will this last. Will it ever go to an end?

In today’s gospel, we hear Jesus’ consoling words …“Come to me all, who are burdened and I will give you rest”. Jesus knows how burdened people we are, because He shared our humanity and even embraced our poverty. During His time, His people were also burdened with poverty, heavy taxes to pay to the Romans and to the Jewish temples and violence is also everywhere. And so we believe that He understands how troubled we are, more than anyone else. Jesus’ clearly invites us today, to come to Him and rest in Him especially during these tough times. He invites us to trust Him even more by offering our difficulties, our sadness, pains and struggle so He can give us comfort and rest. And that I think is the good news, amidst all the bad things happening around us. That God, who is much bigger good news than all the bad news combined, is out there, sympathizing with us and will never leave us no matter what. We just have to keep the faith and pray even more.

And so let us continue to pray for one another, for our country and especially for our poor brothers and sisters who suffers most during this time.

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[1]Inflation measures how fast overall prices are rising over a specific period, usually a year. The higher the inflation, the faster the prices are rising, Inquirer Research, PDI, Sat. July 5, 2008