Job 3:1-3, 11-17, 20-23 / Luke 9:51-56
We have heard it said that when the going gets tough, the tough gets going.
How often that happens in life depends on how tough the going gets.
For those who have overcome a great crisis or a great challenge, they will realize their strengths and endurance, and at the same time their limitations and weaknesses which they have overcome.
But it cannot be denied that there are also those who succumb to the turmoil and distress, and they sink into despair.
In the 1st reading, we hear of Job's lamentations as he faced the great crisis of his life and as he was being swamped by one trail after another and spiralling down to hopeless and darkness.
He even cursed the day of his birth. For Job, life has no meaning anymore and surely he would have thoughts of ending his life.
But in the gospel, we hear of Jesus heading towards Jerusalem where He knows He will meet His end with a traumatic and torturous death.
And even as Jesus resolutely took the road towards Jerusalem and prepared to face the ultimate test of His life, He also faced rejection from the Samaritans. Yet He kept His focus and continued despite these setbacks and discouragements.
We too will have our share of trials and tribulations. We also must believe that God will not test us beyond our limits.
God wants us to live and rise above our trials so that we can discover the strength of our faith in Him. But in order to keep on going, we must keep our focus on Jesus and follow His resolutely along the way.