"TAKE COURAGE, FOR I WILL BE WITH YOU"
We
have many questions, today, don't we?
Good
answers depend on being courageous about our daily commitment of life and to
accept and obey our heavenly Father's voice of love.
In the first reading,
the Lord speaks to the people through the Prophet Haggai. He tells the people
to "take courage" (Hg 2:4). He says this three times because the
people are giving up on the hard work of rebuilding the temple after returning home
from exile. All their enthusiasm for something of great value is running out of
gas. Through the Prophet, the Lord exhorts them several times: "Take
courage, for I will be with you" (ibid).
Haggai knew, just as
our bishops at the Second Vatican Council knew, and just as any spiritual
leader knows, that our external actions are not enough. If we, the Children of
God, are to do what He wants, we need inner courage, and that will usually
require a measure of conversion. The essence of Haggai's message to his contemporaries
is as relevant today as it was then, not just for erecting buildings but for
forming a faithful, worshipping People of God.
We have many
questions, today, don't we? Questions pertaining to our Faith, our lives, work,
managing our homes and so on. Good answers depend on being courageous about our
daily commitment of life and to accept and obey our heavenly Father's voice of
love. The Scripture's message is brought together for us In the Responsorial
Psalm: "Hope in God; I will praise Him, my Savior and my God" (Ps
43:5).
In our prayer for our
own contentment - for a deep, social, and religious need to communicate to
others - we need God's presence through the Sacraments. We need His joy and
sincerity of heart. In the midst of the trials and sufferings that form part of
the human condition, may we ask for the serenity to face them and the
steadfastness to go through them with confidence, so that even in our dark
hours we may be a living witness to the loving power of the Lord's hand. In peace
and joy let us always be a serene witness to the glory to come; citizens of
heaven, on our way through this world, to our final destination with You, our
God!
Are you thinking God's
way or your own way?