REFLECTION FOR ALL SUNDAYS YEAR B ~ AUGUST 2024

REFLECTION FOR ALL SUNDAYS YEAR B – AUGUST 2024

18^th Sunday (A desire to be with Him) (August 4)

Today we reflect “why do we have a desire to be with him”? A story by an unknown author is a direct hit to our consciousness to see why we follow Jesus!  Do we think being a Christian is more than enough to follow Jesus or do we need to do something more to follow him? One day, I woke early in the morning to watch the sunrise. Ah! … the beauty of God’s creation is beyond description. As I watched, I praised God for His beautiful work. As I sat there, I felt the Lord’s presence with me. He asked me, “Do you love me?” I answered, “Of course, God! You are my Lord and Saviour!”

Then He asked, “If you were physically handicapped, would you still love me?”

I was perplexed. I looked down upon my arms, legs and the rest of my body and wondered how many things I wouldn’t be able to do and thought about the things that I take for granted. I answered, “It would be tough Lord, but I would still love You.”

Then the Lord said, “If you were blind, would you still love my creation?”

How could I love something without being able to see it? Then I thought of all the blind people in the world and how many of them still loved God and His creation. So I answered, “It’s hard to think of it, but I would still love you.”

The Lord then asked me, “If you were deaf, would you still listen to my word?”

How could I listen to anything being deaf? Then I understood. Listening to God’s Word is not merely using our ears, but our hearts. I answered, “It would be tough, but I would still listen to Your word.”

The Lord then asked, “If you were mute, would you still praise My Name?”

How could I praise without a voice? Then it occurred to me, God wants us to sing from our very hearts and souls. It never matters what we sound like. And praising God is not always with a song, but when we are persecuted, we give God praise with our words of thanks. So I answered, “Though I could not physically sing, I would still praise Your Name.”

And the Lord asked, “Do you really love Me?”

With courage and a strong conviction, I answered boldly, “Yes Lord! I love You because You are the one and true God!”

I thought I had answered well, but God asked, “Then why do you sin?”

I answered, “Because I am only human. I am not perfect.”

“Then why in times of peace do you stray the furthest? Why only in times of trouble do you pray in earnest?”

I had no answers … only tears.

The Lord continued. “Why only sing at fellowships and retreats? Why seek Me only in times of worship? Why ask things so selfishly? Why ask things so unfaithfully?”

The tears continued to roll down my cheeks. “Why are you ashamed of Me? Why are you not spreading the good news? Why, in times of persecution, you cry to others when I offer My shoulder to cry on? Why make excuses when I give you opportunities to serve in My Name?”

“You are blessed with life. I made you not to throw this gift away. I have blessed you with talents to serve Me, but you continue to turn away. I have revealed My Word to you, but you do not gain knowledge. I have spoken to you, but your ears were closed. I have shown My blessings to you, but your eyes were turned away. I have heard your prayers and I have answered them all. Do you truly love me?

I could not answer. How could I? I was embarrassed beyond belief. I had no excuse. What could I say to this? When my heart had cried out and the tears had flowed, I said, “Please forgive me Lord. I am unworthy to be Your child.”

The Lord answered, “That is My Grace, My child.”

I asked, “Then why do you continue to forgive me? Why do You love me so?”

The Lord answered, ” Because you are My creation. You are my child. I will never abandon you. When you cry, I will have compassion and cry with you. When you shout with joy, I will laugh with you. When you are down, I will encourage you. When you fall, I will raise you up. When you are tired, I will carry you. I will be with you until the end of days, and I will love you forever.”

Never had I cried so hard before. How could I have been so cold? How could I have hurt God as I had done? I asked God, “How much do You love me?”

The Lord stretched out His arms, and I saw His nail-pierced hands. I bowed down at the feet of Christ, my Savior. And for the first time, I truly prayed.

Do we desire to be with him? 

19^th Sunday (Faith & Relationship) (August 11)

This Sunday, we continue the Reading of Chapter Six of the Gospel according to John, in which Jesus, after performing the great miracle of the multiplication of the loaves, explains to the people the meaning of that “sign” (Jn 6:41-51). As he had done earlier with the Samaritan woman, starting from the experience of thirst and the sign of water, here Jesus begins from the experience of hunger and the sign of bread, to reveal himself and to offer an invitation to believe in him. The people seek him, the people listen to him, because they are still enthusiastic about the miracle; they want to make him king! However, when Jesus affirms that he is the true bread given by God, many are shocked, they do not understand, and begin murmuring among themselves, saying: “Do we not know his father and mother? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” And they begin to murmur. Then Jesus says, “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him”, and he adds: “he who believes has eternal life”. This word of the Lord astonishes us and makes us think. It introduces the dynamic of faith, which is a relationship: the relationship between the human person — all of us — and the Person of Jesus, where the Father plays a decisive role, and, of course, the Holy Spirit does too, which is implied here. To believe in Him, it is not enough to meet Jesus. Faith, which is like a seed deep in the heart, blossoms when we let the Father draw us to Jesus, and we “go to Him” with an open heart, without prejudices; then we recognize in his face the Face of God, and in his words the Word of God, because the Holy Spirit has made us enter into the relationship of love and of life between Jesus and God the Father. And there we receive a gift, the gift of faith.

 

A water bearer in India had two large pots, each hung on the ends of a pole that he carried across his neck. One of the pots had a crack in it, while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water.

At the end of the long walk from the stream to the house, the cracked pot arrived only half full. For a full two years this went on daily, with the bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his house.

Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, perfect for which it was made. But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection and miserable that it was able to accomplish only half of what it had been made to do.

After two years of what it perceived to be a bitter failure, it spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream. “I am ashamed of myself, and I want to apologize to you. I have been able to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your house. Because of my flaws, you must do all of this work, and you don’t get full value from your efforts,” the pot said.

The bearer said to the pot, “Did you notice that there were flowers on your side of the path but not on the other pot’s side? That’s because I have always known about your flaw, and I planted flower seeds on your side of the path. Every day while we walk back, you’ve watered them. For two years, I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate the table. Without you being just the way you are, there would not be this beauty to grace the house.”

Does our Faith help us to have strong relationship with him? 

20^th Sunday (Hunger for the Lord) (August 18)

If we look around, we realize that there are so many offers of food which do not come from the Lord and which appear to be more satisfying. Some nourish themselves with money, others with success and vanity, others with power and pride. But the food that truly nourishes and satiates us is only that which the Lord gives us! The food the Lord offers us is different from other food, and perhaps it doesn’t seem as flavourful to us as certain other dishes the world offers us. So we dream of other dishes, like the Hebrews in the desert, who longed for the meat and onions they ate in Egypt, but forgot that they had eaten those meals at the table of slavery. In those moments of temptation, they had a memory, but a sick memory, a selective memory. A slave memory, not a free one. Besides physical hunger, man experiences another hunger, a hunger that cannot be satiated with ordinary food. It’s a hunger for life, a hunger for love, a hunger for eternity. And the sign of manna — like the entire experience of Exodus — also contains in and of itself this dimension: it was the symbol of a food that satisfies this deep human hunger. Jesus gives us this food, rather, He himself is the living bread that gives life to the world (cf. Jn 6:51). His Body is the true food in the form of bread; his Blood is the true drink in the form of wine. It isn’t simple nourishment to satisfy the body, like manna; the Body of Christ is the bread of the last times, capable of giving life, eternal life, because this bread is made of love.

The Eucharist communicates the Lord’s love for us: a love so great that it nourishes us with Himself; a freely given love, always available to every person who hungers and needs to regenerate his own strength. To live the experience of faith means to allow oneself to be nourished by the Lord and to build one’s own existence not with material goods but with the reality that does not perish: the gifts of God, his Word and his Body.

This is by an unknow author to show us the way to see our hunger for him through prayer.

(person)- ‘Our Father which art in heaven…’

(God)—Yes?

(person)- Don’t interrupt me. I’m praying.

(God)—But you called me.

(person)-Called you? I didn’t call you. I’m praying. “Our Father which art in heaven…”

(God)—There you did it again.

(person)-Did what?

(God)—Called me. You said, “Our Father which art in heaven.” Here I am… What’s on your mind?

(person)-But I didn’t mean anything by it. I was, you know, just saying my prayers for the day. I always say the Lord’s Prayer. It makes me feel good, kind of like getting a duty done.

(God)—All right. Go on.

(person)-“Hallowed be thy name…”

(God)—Hold it. What do you mean by that?

(person) By what?

(God)—By “hallowed be thy name”?

(person)-It means… it means… Good grief, I don’t know what it means. How should I know? It’s just a part of the prayer. By the way, what does it mean?

(God)—It means honored, holy, wonderful.

(person)-Hey, that makes sense. I never thought about what “hallowed” meant before. “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”

(God)—Do you really mean that?

(person)-Sure, why not?

(God)—What are you doing about it?

(person)-Doing? Nothing, I guess. I just think it would be kind of neat if you got control of everything down here like you have up there.

(God)—Have I got control of you?

(person)-Well, I go to church.

(God)—That isn’t what I asked you. What about your bad temper? You’ve really got a problem there, you know. And then there’s the way you spend your money—all on yourself. And what about the kind of books you read?

(person)-Stop picking on me! I’m just as good as some of the rest of those people at the church.

(God)—Excuse me. I thought you were praying for my will to be done. If that is to happen, it will have to start with the ones who are praying for it. Like you, for example.

(person)-Oh, all right. I guess I do have some hang-ups. Now that you mention it, I could probably name some others.

(God)—So could I.

(person)-I haven’t thought about it very much until now, but I really would like to cut out some of those things. I would like to, you know, be really free.

(God)—Good. Now we’re getting somewhere. We’ll work together, you and I. Some victories can truly be won. I’m proud of you.

(person)-Look, Lord, I need to finish up here. This is taking a lot longer than it usually does. “Give us this day, our daily bread.”

(God)—You need to cut out the bread. You’re overweight as it is.

(person)-Hey, wait a minute! What is this, “Criticize me day”? Here I was doing my religious duty, and all of a sudden you break in and remind me of all my hang-ups.

(God)—Praying is a dangerous thing. You could wind up changed, you know. That’s what I’m trying to get across to you. You called me, and here I am. It’s too late to stop now. Keep praying, I’m interested in the next part of your prayer…(pause).

Well, go on.

(person)-I’m scared to.

(God)—Scared? Of what?

(person)-I know what you’ll say.

(God)—Try me and see.

(person)-“Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.”

(God)—What about Ann?

(person)-See? I knew it! I knew you would bring her up! Why, Lord, she’s told lies about me, spread stories about my family. She never paid back the debt she owes me. I’ve sworn to get even with her!

(God)—But your prayer? What about your prayer?

(person)-I didn’t mean it.

(God)—Well, at least you’re admitting it. But it’s not much fun carrying that load of bitterness around inside, is it?

(person)-No. But I’ll feel better as soon as I get even. Boy, have I got some plans for that neighbor. She’ll wish she had never moved into this neighborhood.

(God)—You won’t feel any better. You’ll feel worse. Revenge isn’t sweet. Think of how unhappy you already are. But I can change all that.

(person)-You can? How?

(God)—Forgive Ann. Then I’ll forgive you. Then the hate and sin will be Ann’s problem and not yours. You will have settled your heart.

(person)-Oh, you’re right. You always are. And more than I want to revenge Ann, I want to be right with you….(pause)…(sigh). All right. All right. I forgive her. Help her to find the right road in life, Lord. She’s bound to be awfully miserable now that I think about it. Anybody who goes around doing the things she does to others has to be out of it. Someway, somehow, show her the right way.

(God)—There now! Wonderful! How do you feel?

(person)-Hmmm. Well, not bad. Not bad at all. In fact, I feel pretty great! You know, I don’t think I’ll have to go to bed uptight tonight for the first time since I can remember. Maybe I won’t be so tired from now on because I’m not getting enough rest.

(God)—You’re not through with your prayer. Go on. (person)-Oh, all right. “And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.” (God)—Good! Good! I’ll do that. Just don’t put yourself in a place where you can be tempted.

(person)-What do you mean by that?

(God)—Don’t turn on the TV when you know the laundry needs to be done and the house needs to be picked up. Also, about the time you spend coffee-ing with your friends, if you can’t influence the conversation to positive things, perhaps you should re-think the value of those friendships. Another thing, your neighbors and friends shouldn’t be your standard for “keeping up”. And please don’t use me for an escape hatch.

(person)-I don’t understand the last part.

(God)—Sure you do. You’ve done it a lot of times. You get caught in a bad situation. You get into trouble and then you come running to me, “Lord, help me out of this mess, and I promise you I’ll never do it again.” You remember some of those bargains you tried to make with me?

(person)-Yes, and I’m ashamed, Lord. I really am.

(God)—Which bargain are you remembering?

(person)-Well, there was the night that the children and I were home alone. The wind was blowing so hard I thought the roof would go any minute and tornado warnings were out. I remember praying, “Oh, God, if you spare us, I’ll never skip my devotions again.”

(God) –Did you?

(person)-I’m sorry, Lord, I really am. Up until now I thought that if I just prayed the Lord’s Prayer every day, then I could do what I liked. I didn’t expect anything to happen like it did.

(God)—Go ahead and finish your prayer.

(person)-“For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever.” Amen

(God)—Do you know what would bring me glory? What would really make me happy?

(person)-No, but I’d like to know. I want now to please you. I can see what a mess I’ve made of my life. And I can see how great it would be to really be one of your followers.

(God)—You just answered the question.

(person)-I did?

(God)—Yes. The thing that would bring me glory is to have people like you truly love me. And I see that happening between us. Now that some of these old sins are exposed and out of the way, well, there is no telling what we can do together.

(person) – Lord, let’s see what we can make of me, OK? Amen!

Do we hunger for His Body & Blood? 

21st Sunday (Confessing & accepting Jesus) (August 25)

Today the Sixth Chapter of the Gospel of John concludes the discourse on the Bread of Life, which Jesus gave the day after the multiplication of the loaves and fish. In reality, they had certainly understood Jesus’ discourse so well that they did not want to heed it, because it was a discourse which threw their mind-set into crisis. Jesus’ words always throw us into crisis, for example, the worldly spirit, worldliness. But Jesus offers the key for overcoming this difficulty; a key consisting of three elements. First, his divine origin: he came down from heaven and will ascend again to “where he was before”. Second: his words can be understood only through the action of the Holy Spirit. The One who “gives life” is precisely the Holy Spirit who enables us to understand Jesus properly. Third: the true cause of incomprehension of his words is the lack of faith: “there are some of you that do not believe”, Jesus says. In fact, from that time, the Gospel says, “many of his disciples drew back”. In the face of these desertions, Jesus does not compromise and does not mince words, indeed he demands that a precise choice be made: either to stay with him or leave him, and he says to the Twelve: “Will you also go away?”.

At this point Peter makes his confession of faith on behalf of the other Apostles: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life”. He does not say “where shall we go?”, but “to whom shall we go?”. The underlying problem is not about leaving and abandoning the work undertaken, but to whom to go. From Peter’s question we understand that fidelity to God is a question of fidelity to a person, to whom we bind ourselves to walk together on the same road. And this person is Jesus. All that we have in the world does not satisfy our infinite hunger. We need Jesus, to be with him, to be nourished at his table, on his words of eternal life! Believing in Jesus means making him the centre, the meaning of our life. Christ is not an optional element: he is the “Living Bread”, the essential nourishment. Binding oneself to him, in a true relationship of faith and love, does not mean being tied down, but being profoundly free, always on the journey.

A few years ago, a group of salesmen went to a regional sales convention in Chicago. They had assured their wives that they would be home in plenty of time for Friday night’s dinner.

In their rush, with tickets and briefcases in hand, moving quickly through the airport terminal, one of these salesmen inadvertently kicked over a table which held a display of apples. Apples flew everywhere. Without stopping or looking back, they all managed to reach the plane in time for their nearly missed boarding.

All but one! He paused, took a deep breath, quickly assessed the situation — and experienced a twinge of compassion for the girl whose apple stand had been overturned. He told his buddies to go on without him, waved good-bye, told one of them to call his wife when they arrived at their home destination and explain his taking a later flight. Then, he returned to the terminal where the apples were still all over the terminal floor.

The man was glad he did. The 16-year-old girl running the stand, he discovered, was totally blind! She was softly crying, tears running down her cheeks in frustration, all the while helplessly groping for her spilled produce as the rushing crowd swirled about her, no one stopping and no one caring for her plight.

No one else, that is. The salesman knelt on the floor with her, gathered up the apples, put them back on the table and helped organize her display. As he did this, he noticed that many of them had become battered and bruised. These he set aside in another basket.

When he had finished, he pulled out his wallet and said to the girl, “Here, please take this $40 for the damage we did. Are you okay?” She nodded through her tears. “I hope we didn’t spoil your day too badly,” he said.

As the salesman started to walk away, the bewildered blind girl called out to him, “Mister…” He paused and turned to look back into those blind eyes. She continued, “Are you Jesus?”

He stopped in mid-stride, and he wondered, stunned by the words. Then slowly, he made his way to catch the later flight with that question burning in his soul: “Are you Jesus?”

Who is Jesus for me?