O Lord, you have enticed me, and I was enticed; you have overpowered me, and you have prevailed. I have become a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me. For whenever I speak, I must cry out, I must shout, “Violence and destruction!” For the word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long. If I say, “I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name,” then within me there is something like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot.
I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God-what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Second reading Romans 12:1-2
Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you. ” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things. ” Then Jesus told his disciples, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life? “For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done.
Reflection
Reflection
By Bernard M.
“Purpose” is a very common word today, or at least for me. Some 20 years ago, people didn't seem to be bothered about “finding their purpose in life”. As long as we do good things and have a clear direction of what we want to achieve, we consider it as our purpose. Books and discussions about this have not been popular during those times. Today, there are many advocates about finding purpose in life. Discussions range from “what are your dreams in life?” to “what is the reason that you exist?” Self-help books, talks, inspirational and motivational workshops, and other ways of preaching about purpose have gone in different directions. While these may help some people to live a contented life, there are people who have been following some of these teachings but still seek fulfillment. I can go on doing charity work but if I do this because “it’s a job” or “my friends are doing it” or “I feel a sense of belongingness”, I won’t find true fulfillment. I can work hard to gain wealth and help the poor but if this is not the will of God, my heart will never find contentment. I believe that finding our purpose is a result of finding life when we completely offer ourselves to God. Like the prophet Jeremiah when he tried to stop himself from including God in what he does in life, we are imprisoned in our own desires to seek our purpose by doing what we love, but forget to include what God has to say.
St. Paul talks about the transformation by the renewing of our minds, and discerning for ourselves what is the will of God. I believe this does not mean that we find fulfillment in life by doing what we love, which is a common theme in some teachings today, but because we should not model what we do on what is common. St. Paul affirmed what Jesus said to His disciples, “Anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it.” when he urged us to offer ourselves as a dedicated and acceptable living sacrifice. Constant discernment may help us to open our hearts and listen to what God wants us to do.
Jesus rebuked Peter because “he thinks not as God thinks but as human beings do.” Like Peter, if we only believe what we like in Jesus’ words but reject what makes us disagreeable, it’s not Jesus who we believe but ourselves. There are times when we are unconsciously tempted to go our own ways and do what we want because we forget how God thinks. Like the disciples when they only have five loaves and two fish, we feel stuck or trapped not because God wants us to feel this, but because we choose to do things on our own and forget that God is with us. Like the disciples when they felt bothered by the Canaanite woman, we feel burdened by the work that we do because we deny our hearts to feel the compassion and sensitivity to the needs of others. Like Peter who lost his focus on who made him walk on water, we feel that we are sinking because our attention is on what can drown us. We forget to focus on the grace of God which has always been life-giving.
Like St. Augustine says, “You have made us for Yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they find rest in You.” We lose our life when we do things without God and our hearts will continue to be restless. We find rest and fulfillment, and eventually find our purpose, when we constantly discern what God wants in everything that we do.
Prayer
God Almighty Father. We praise You for all that You are. Your faithful and unconditional love for us will always be greater than the life we seek on our own. Help us to find You in all things as we constantly discern Your wisdom to do Your will. May we find enlightenment in the darkness that we go through every moment when we fall astray. We beg for the grace of rest and true freedom as we continue to desire to dwell in Your heart. In Jesus’ Name we pray, with Mary His mother who also intercedes in our discernment,
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