Today's Reading - http://usccb.org/bible/readings/113011.cfm
Today, I asked the Holy Spirit to spare me fifteen minutes to write a blog. I just have this burning desire to write today.
During the weekend we were putting up Christmas decorations. I'm amazed to see our kids so joyful in decorating and helping out. Our youngest would say "I love Christmas!" and our oldest would be smiling all the time. I wonder what is going on in their hearts at that time. Oh the joy of being a child! So we ask our oldest son, "Do you know what advent is?" He said. "Yes, it is the time for you to start doing something!". I was actually quite shocked at his response. If you listen closely, at 4 years old, that response is quite intelligent and full of meaning. Advent is indeed a time for us to do something with our lives and share it with others. It was a very profound answer.
So now let's go to the readings...from Romans "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved". but then St. Paul goes on to say that now that you believed, go and proclaim Jesus to others. "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news!".
My third LSS (Life in the Spirit Seminar) was truly my "slap in the face" wake-up me up total conversion. Now I'm starting to realize that having gone through experience in life (good and bad) no matter how crooked it was, it led me to Christ, and continuously converting me everyday . No matter how imperfect I am, I am brought to perfection in Christ. It gets even better! As the response in the Psalm reading says "Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life". I can honestly say (and I am not boasting) that I am obsessed with the Bible. And this did not come solely on my own, but a gift from the Holy Spirit. I was terrible in reading books, I was so lazy. I do not even want to go near the bible, or any other supplement to it, because I just did not plain understand it. But now I do, by the power of the Holy Spirit! So what do we do with these gifts that we receive? With the faith that we have been given? With the knowledge of Christ? Do we keep it on our own and move on with life? NO! You share it! You share it with me! You share it with others! I share you my gift and knowledge so you can be built up, but I want you to share your gifts to me so I can be built up also!
For a while I struggled with the call of Christ. If I am to be a disciple, what do I do? Do I travel to places like the disciples? Do I leave my job? Do I leave my family and kids? Absolutely not! This is why I am starting to love the simple ways of St. Therese. You can glorify God and proclaim the Good News in simple ways. And this is what was revealed to me. You don't have to look far, our primary ministry is our own family. How many in your family believe in Jesus Christ? and if they do, do they really understand it? or do they just go to church because of practice? and goes back watching TV after church, and go back to their normal lives? How about our kids? are we teaching them the faith? How about our parents? Do they have a personal relationship with Christ? Our friends? Our neighbors? The people in the pews on Sunday, who goes there, just for the sake of going there but do not have Christ in their hearts? In the Agony in the Garden, these are the souls that gave Jesus the most pain, the soul that are lukewarm to God. We don't have to go far to proclaim Jesus to other people, it's within our reach. You may be asking now...now how do I do this? Don't worry, I have the same exact question also to myself. Remember the Samaritan woman who met Jesus Christ, and then Jesus started telling her that she had many men in her life and that the man that she is living with at that time was not her husband? (John 4: 4-42) She was amazed after that and was converted. And what did she do? She started telling people about Christ by telling them her life story. Her greatest form of evangelization was telling them how crooked her life was, and now she found Christ. Some believed, some didn't, some even asked question. So you will get the same reaction too.
So now my challege to you is this. Will you use your gifts to build me up and the people around you and proclaim Jesus? Jesus said in the gospel "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men". Will you follow Him?
God loves you.
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