"TAKE COURAGE,
FOR I WILL BE WITH YOU"
FOR I WILL BE WITH YOU"
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.
Take courage, the
Prophet Haggai tells the people. Take courage. He says this three times because
the people are giving up on the hard work of rebuilding the temple after they
return 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." Haggai knew, just as our bishops at the Second Vatican Council knew,
just as any spiritual leader knows, that the external action is 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.
Today we have many
questions, don't we? These questions pertain to our faith, our lives, work,
managing the home, and so on. Good answers depend on being courageous about our
daily commitment of life and to accept and obey our heavenly Father's loving
voice.
In the Responsorial
Psalm it brings the Scriptures message all together for us: Hope in God; I will
praise Him, my Savior and my God (Ps 43.) In our prayer we find peace and
contentment accepting the deep, social, and religious need to communicate with
others. We need God's presence through the sacrament of His joy. In the midst
of the trials and sufferings that form the part of the human condition, may we
ask for the serenity to face these trials 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 in joy let us always be a
serene witness to the glory to come, as 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?