Inspirations at your Fingertips!

Friday of week 13 in Ordinary Time Matthew 9:9-13  There's a sense of exclusivity in the first reading.  Abraham who sought for a wife for his son Isaac, explicitly told the servant not to get from Canaan, a foreign land, but from the family where he came from. But the Gospel teaches inclusivity.  Matthew and the rest were accepted wholeheartedly by Jesus.  Furthermore, he said, "What I want is mercy, not sacrifice. And indeed I did not come to call the virtuous, but sinners." We are fond of compartmentalizing people - rich and poor, haves and have nots, healthy and sick, successful and failures.  But one thing is certain - in heaven there are no rich or poor, powerful and powerless.  All of us become brothers and sisters of one Lord and Master.   And he teaches us to love one another as he loves us. So, make a checklist of relationship with others: 1. Do I carry a bias for or against people or do I see the face of God in them? 2....

A true friend Mark 10:1-12 "Tell me your friends and I'll tell you who you are" is a common norm for evaluating our real selves.  People who take the worldly as their friends will reap worldly fruits, including the death of self. If we consider God as our first, best, and ultimate friend, we shall be perfect in him. Jesus reiterated the sanctity of marriage because it is a mirror of God's friendship with man - eternal, merciful, and all forgiving.  If we follow this path, we shall truly be like him, a true friend: A loyal friend God's unending faithfulness can only be manifested by a true friend who will stay with us through thick and thin;  A friend who leads us to the truth A true friend molds our consciences and leads us to truth and freedom; A friend with a perfect love God's friendship makes us perfect in love and offering. It is true, one who finds a friend finds a real treasure.  "For friendship is the elixir of life,...

The bible and I John 15:12-17 I believe that quite analogically, my life should be the living bible of the Lord. Whatever happens to the bible happens to my life. If there are things that don't have any connection with God's word, it is not coming from the Holy Spirit. I am the embodiment of the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit works in me.  I should be an instrument of the Holy Spirit. The Gospel message is so beautiful.  "Love one another as I have loved you."  Whatever love is in our hearts, it should mirror Jesus' love for us. "I call you friends, not servants..." marks our relationship with one another. "I chose you..." simply means that it is Jesus who leads us.  Every task we do in this world should arise from being chosen to do Jesus' task.