3rd Week of Lent, Wednesday, 15-03-2023

Deuteronomy 4:1, 5-9 / Matthew 5:17-19   

Whenever we talk about the topic of obedience, we can expect that there will be many views and opinions.

Because in the first place, obedience is often seen as a limitation of freedom, and that is usually where the contention comes.

But generally speaking, obedience can have two aspects – one is enforced obedience, which comes with punishment if obedience is not adhered to.

The other is rational obedience, where the purpose of obeying a law or rule is clear because it is for personal good as well as for the good of others.

In the 1st reading, Moses reiterated the goodness of the Laws and Commandments that God gave to His people.

And if the people keep these God-given laws and commandment, even other nations will say that no other people is as wise and prudent as the people of God.

But Moses also warned the people: Take care what you do and be on your guard.

Because the human tendency is to disobey and give in to freedom of desires, which is always as expression of selfishness and greed.

Jesus came not to abolish the Law or Commandments; rather He came to fulfill them.

Jesus is the Truth, the Way and the Life.

When we pledge our obedience to God’s Truth and walk the Way of Jesus, then we will have life and life to the full.

3rd Week of Lent, Tuesday, 14-03-2023

Daniel 3:25, 34-43 / Matthew 18:21-35

Whenever we say that we are busy, we may need to ask ourselves what are we really busy with.

Are we busy with the important things in life?

Or are we saying that we are busy as an excuse to avoid looking at the important things of life?

In the 1st reading, Azariah was busy with a prayer. 

His prayer was for something important – he was praying for forgiveness for his people, as he says:

“may the contrite soul, the humbled spirit be acceptable to you”, “treat us gently, as you yourself are gentle and very merciful”.

So, Azariah was busy praying for forgiveness.

In the gospel, Peter was busy counting the number of times that one should forgive.

But Jesus tells him to forgive seventy-seven times, in other words, unlimited forgiving.

So, essentially in life there are two important things that we should be busy with:

We should be busy praying for forgiveness, and we should be busy forgiving others.

3rd Week of Lent, Monday, 13-03-2023

2 Kings 5:1-15 / Luke 4:2-30     

The 40 days of Lent was originally a time of preparation for the Elects who are journeying towards Baptism.

It is a time of purification and enlightenment as the Elects scrutinize themselves so that they will discover deeper faults and failings and to turn to the Lord for healing and strength.

When the early Church saw how the Elects were blessed with the grace of God in their preparation for Baptism, the Church decided to use this as a form of renewal for those who are already baptized.

So, it can be said that the baptized learnt from those who were preparing for baptism, how to use the 40 days of Lent to prepare for the renewal of their own baptism at Easter.

In the 1st reading, Naaman went thought an experience of conversion and discovered who God is as he proclaimed: Now I know, that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel.

In the gospel, when Jesus recalled how Naaman, the Syrian, was cured but not the other lepers in Israel, the people were enraged.

It was like saying that the outsiders know about God better than the people of God.

As for ourselves, as we see the Elects preparing for Baptism, let us pray for them as they prepare for Baptism.

And let us also pray for ourselves, that we will also experience purification and enlightenment in preparation for the renewal of our Baptismal promises at Easter.

3rd Sunday of Lent, Year A, 12.03.2023

Exodus 17:3-7 / Romans 5:1-2, 5-8 / John 4:5-42 

It is not so often that we have to stand that long at Mass, or more precisely, that long for the Gospel reading. 

In fact, the moments that we stand during Mass are not that many. Most of the time, we are either sitting or kneeling. 

So, for the long gospel reading, having to stand causes some distractions, one of which is that we begin to feel tired. 

Talking about tiredness, there are generally two types of tiredness. 

One is the physical tiredness, which requires rest or sleep, and that kind of tiredness is usually quite obvious. 

The other type of tiredness, which may not be so obvious, is the tiredness of the heart. 

The heart is tired because the heart is not at rest, the heart is not at peace, the heart is troubled. 

In the gospel, Jesus came to a Samaritan town and He came to a well. He was tired out by the journey, and He sat straight down by the well, obviously tired as well as thirsty. 

At about the sixth hour, or around noon, a woman came along to draw water from the well. 

She too was thirsty, but she was actually more tired. To come to the well at that time of the day means that she was avoiding people, and that she has something to hide. 

So, other than feeling thirsty, she was feeling more tired, physically and emotionally, because her heart was troubled, she had no peace of heart. 

In her encounter with Jesus, she became aware of her need for peace, a need that is deeper than the need for water or to rest. 

Finally, she put down her water jar and headed back to the town to tell the people about Jesus. 

She seems to have forgotten about her thirst and her troubles, because in her encounter with Jesus, she experienced Jesus as the living water of her life. 

Jesus quenched her thirst, and calmed her heart, such that she forgot about her water jar and went to the people she had been avoiding. 

We may not be that thirsty, but we have to admit that we are tired. 

We are physically tired and maybe even more emotionally tired. 

Our hearts are tired out by anger, resentment, bitterness, disappointment, shame, guilt.

Whatever it may be, Jesus Is our living water who will cleanse and refresh our hearts.

We just have to tell Jesus that we are thirsty and that we are tired. 

Let us come to Jesus and sit beside Him in prayer. 

It is in prayer that we will receive the healing and life-giving water from Jesus.

2nd Week of Lent, Saturday, 11-03-2023

Micah 7:14-15, 18-20 / Luke 15:1-3, 11-32   

It is difficult to understand poverty if we had not had the experience of living from hand to mouth and with nothing to rely on.

It is difficult to understand physical handicaps if we had not had the experience of the temporary loss of our limbs or faculties.

And it may be difficult to understand love, compassion and forgiveness, if we had not had the experience of wrong-doing and having to pay for our faults.

If we had not gone down on our knees to pray, or beg, for forgiveness, then love and compassion may just be concepts or ideas in our minds.

Although the gospel parable may not be based on any factual account, yet we cannot say that such a situation did not happen.

But more importantly is the message of the parable, that God is truly love, compassion and forgiveness.

As the 1st reading would state this about God: What god can compare with you – taking fault away, pardoning crime, not cherishing anger for ever but delighting in showing mercy.

So let us heed the call to repentance. 

We don’t need to be brought down to our knees to understand the love, compassion and forgiveness of God.

2nd Week of Lent, Friday, 10-03-2023

Genesis 37:3-4, 12-13, 17-28 / Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46   

Whenever we talk about God’s plan, we usually reflect about it from retrospect.

In other words, we usually see the wonder of God’s plan only after when it has happened and then we are able to connect the dots together.

But when God’s plan was unfolding in our lives, we may not understand it.

In fact, we may be rather perturbed and disturbed by it.

In the 1st reading, though Joseph was much loved by his father but he was much hated by his brothers.

And then his brothers hatched a plan to kill him but later they changed their minds and sold him off as a slave.

Joseph was certainly distressed by what was happening to him, but he endured it.

It can be said that he had the faith to believe that his life is in God’s hands and that God had a plan for him.

Indeed, God not only had a plan for Joseph, God also had a plan for His people and Joseph was going to be a major part in God’s plan.

So when life is going rough and heavy, and we are perturbed and disturbed and even in distress, let us hold on to our faith in God.

Let us believe that God has a plan for us, and with faith, we will journey on and we will be able to see the wonder of God’s plan.

2nd Week of Lent, Thursday, 09-03-2023

Jeremiah 17:5-10 / Luke 16:19-31

As much as we know that wickedness and evil will certainly lead to a dreaded end, yet at times we wonder why wicked people and those who commit evil are not punished immediately.

If punishment is swift and sharp for those who commit evil and wicked deeds, then it would certainly be a deterrent against others who are thinking of doing likewise.

But such is not usually the case, and as such we might even be tempted to join in the wicked deeds although we may not be that bad as to commit evil deeds.

Wicked deeds like plotting and taking advantage of good and generous people.

Wicked deeds like slandering others and creating discord among others.

But by doing so, what are we saying about ourselves? What are we trusting in?

The 1st reading tells us that a curse be on the man who puts his trust in man, but a blessing on the man who puts his trust in the Lord.

The responsorial psalm tells us why. The man who puts his trust in the Lord is like a tree planted beside the flowing waters, that yields its fruit in due season and whose leaves shall never fade, and all that he does shall prosper.

Indeed, our faith in the Lord should open our eyes to the plight of the poor and those in need around us, whether financially or emotionally and to the Lazaruses that we see around us.

Let us put our trust in the Lord's blessings and walk in His ways, for He will give each man what his conduct and action deserves.