Stay Awake!!

You do not know on which day your Lord will come. (Matthew 24:42)

No wonder Jesus warns us to stay awake! The end could come at any time, and he wants all of us to be ready to greet him when he does come back. This is not just some vague warning. It’s a practical approach to life that we all should adopt.

So stay awake! Remember who you are: a child of God, close to his heart. You are loved, precious, and unique, and he delights in you. You are not just the subject of a distant God. You are his own child, and he cares about you. He rejoices when you do, and he wants to comfort you when you’ve been hurt. Spend some time, daily, alone with the One who is always on your side. “Father, awaken in me the truth that I am your child so that I can live in your love today.”

Stay awake! God has plans for your life, plans for your good, plans to give you a future full of hope

(Jeremiah 29:11). He wants to involve you deeply in his life, even when it looks like the same old job, the same old school routine, or the same old schedule of housework. Ask him! He loves to share his intentions with you. “Father, what are your plans for me today? How do you want to draw me to your side today? How do you want me to build your kingdom today?”

Stay awake! Satan would like nothing better than to catch you asleep. Be wary of his lies, especially when he tries to tell you that you are worthless, unloved, or all alone. Be alert, for the devil wants to bind you with cords of anger, bitterness, and grudges. Don’t fall for it! Forgive. Ask forgiveness. Strife, anxiety, and fear are his territory. Run to your Father when you find yourself there. “Father, open my eyes and ears to perceive and flee the works of the devil.”

Stay awake! God has poured out his love in your heart, a love that can flow out to others. When challenges come, don’t panic. Ask the Father to help you see what he sees, and to love as he does.

“Father, fill my heart with more of your love. Help me to move in your peace and patience today, alert to what you want to do.”

from wau.org

Inside out

Whoever exalts himself will be humbled; but whoever humbles himself will be exalted. (Matthew 23:12)

Wearing a cross on a necklace can be a great way to remind yourself throughout the day to keep God in your thoughts or actions. But imagine if the newest trend were to wear bigger and bigger cross necklaces to demonstrate your piety. That would be a bit contradictory after a while, wouldn’t it? As people started buying bigger crosses, their sincere reason for wearing them would be lost in a sort of “holiness contest.”

This is the kind of thing that Jesus is pointing out in today’s Gospel. The phylacteries (or tefellin) are two small leather boxes that some Jews still wear today. The boxes contain parchment with key Scripture passages written on them. One box is tied to the top of the head, and one is tied to the inside of the arm so that it will touch the heart. The reason for wearing the tefellin is to help the wearers keep God foremost in their minds and hearts as well as in their actions.

However, as we see in today’s reading, some of the Pharisees started making their tefellin larger and broader in a vain attempt to show more piety than the next guy. They also started wearing their traditional tassels larger and lower for the same reason.

The traditions behind outward signs of devotion are sometimes very valid and holy, but we have to make sure that we aren’t putting our efforts into the external signs instead of making our interior connections deeper.

The best way to guard our hearts and minds is through the everyday, regular practices of prayer, repentance, and service. They may not feel as flashy as brand new crosses around our necks, but that’s okay. As we reach out to Jesus, we’ll find him reaching out to us. And we’ll find ourselves becoming more like him—humble vessels of the Spirit. 

Jesus doesn’t care about what is fastened on your head, arms, or neck. He wants to be fastened in your heart.

“Lord, keep me focused on loving you and serving your people. Make my love for you grow from the inside out so that it shines through everything I say, think, and do.”

from wau.org

Looking forward

The Lord is with you, O champion! (Judges 6:12)

Put yourself in Gideon’s sandals for a moment. As a child, you grew up with stories of God rescuing his people from oppression. Years later, you watched the nation of Midian overpower Israel, and your faith in God suffered a major blow. He doesn’t fight for us anymore, you thought. Then one day, a messenger from God shows up. He tells you to go save Israel, because the Lord is with you! Doubts begin to flood your mind, and instead of stepping forward, you turn your gaze backward. Where was God when … ?

What do you do when God nudges you forward? If you’re like most of us, you may find yourself contemplating the past instead of dreaming about the future. You may dwell on the times when it didn’t work out and forget all the times God was with you.

“I don’t know if anyone I’ve ever prayed for has been healed, so what’s the point?” “Peace with that person would be wonderful, but our relationship is beyond repair.” “I’ve never been able to overcome this habit; why should this time be any different?” “I don’t think they’ll ever come back to church, so there’s not much use in inviting them.”

Nevertheless, God is overflowing with patience and kindness toward us! He knows how quickly we can doubt. He also knows that we can be genuinely uncertain as to whether or not we’re hearing his voice correctly. That’s why he will sometimes confirm his message. He did this with Gideon, not just once, but three separate times!

What’s more, he assures us that as we step forward, he is going to be with us. The angel’s first words to Gideon were “The Lord is with you” (Judges 6:12). This ultimately allowed Gideon to turn his focus from his strength—small as it was—to God’s strength. Indeed, nothing is impossible for God. Eventually, of course, Gideon answered the Lord’s call, and God rescued his people again.

Today, when you sense God nudging you forward, don’t let your gaze shift backwards! Keep looking to him for confirmation and courage. Working with him step-by-step, there’s no limit to what he can accomplish through you.

“I can do anything through Christ who gives me strength!”

from wau.org

Expanding love.

Should you not have had pity on your fellow servant, as I had pity on you? (Matthew 18:33).

Science has suggested that humans use only 10 percent of their brains. Moving from this idea, some people have suggested that if we could access the other 90 percent, we would be able to solve so many problems like poverty and world hunger. There may be some merit in this speculation, but we should also acknowledge that much of the problem lies in our hearts and not just in our brains.

Imagine what could happen if we were able to access more of our hearts! What would this world look like if we could love more, forgive more, have more empathy, and look at ourselves and each other the way God does.

Today’s Gospel tells the story of a man who was given the opportunity to do just that but who refused. Having received the pardon of an immense debt from his master, he turned around and acted out of a stingy heart instead. Somehow, even though he had been given a huge gift, he remained as hard-hearted and ungenerous as before. And so it was not the master’s decree but the servant’s own ingratitude that landed him in prison. He excluded himself from the forgiveness his master had offered him.

As far as Jesus is concerned, anyone who has been forgiven much should be so touched by this forgiveness that he or she is moved to love much. But that will happen only as we allow our hearts to be melted by the mercy given to us. Again, it’s a heart issue as well as a brain issue.

Jesus gave all he possibly could when he died on the cross. Don’t take this gift lightly. There’s no way you could possibly repay him for what he has done for you. The only real response—the response of the heart—is to embrace his love and let it make you into a more merciful person. It’s only if we close our hearts to God’s mercy that our love shrinks, allowing criticism and harshness to creep in. So stay mindful of all that you have been given, and you’ll find your capacity to love expanding day by day!

“Thank you, Father, for treating me with so much love! May that love overflow in me, touching every person I encounter today.”

from wau.org

The Lord is our God, the Lord alone!

The Lord is our God, the Lord alone! (Deuteronomy 6:4)

In the ancient world, dealing with the divine was a bit like going to a government office building. If you didn’t get in the right line, you risked wasting hours and hours of your day trying to get your petition answered. If you had a problem with the weather, you needed to make sure you visited the shrine of the god Hadad. But if you wanted to conceive a baby, you’d have to go to Ishtar’s altar. Not to mention, the enmities and squabbling between the gods were as complicated as any interoffice turf war!

Against this bewildering landscape of deities, the Jews stood out in sharp relief. They worshipped only one God. What’s more, he was the only God, the One behind all the forces of nature. There were no other gods jostling for power or telling him what he could and could not do. 

Today’s reading is a declaration known to the Jews as the Shema Yisrael (Hear, O Israel). It captures the essence of their faith in an omnipotent, omniscient, singular God. And it’s an understanding that is just as important to our own faith. We, too, believe in one God who comes to us as a Trinity of divine Persons. 

We believe in a God who is above all else, a God who is not subject to some other more powerful force and not involved in petty squabbles with his fellow “gods.” And yet, where the ancient Canaanites had their pantheon of bickering gods and goddesses, we sometimes have to deal with forces that we might believe God isn’t quite equal to.

Is there something you think God can’t help you with? Money? Family troubles? Your own shortcomings or lack of faith? Whatever it is, remember that the God we believe in has the ultimate power. Nothing is outside his domain. He holds all things together!

So the next time you find yourself waylaid by cares, frightened or frustrated or angry, take heart! Whatever is troubling you, God is infinitely capable of dealing with it. Not only that, but he is eager to help you. Trust in him because “the Lord is our God, the Lord alone!” 

(Deuteronomy 6:4)

“Jesus, I praise you for your immense power and majesty. Thank you for your love and your dominion over every area of my life.”

from wau.org

How tenacious are you?

What can we do? (John 6:28)

You’ve probably heard of the Rubik’s Cube, a puzzle requiring tremendous concentration to solve. You must move the parts of the cube in an exact sequence to master it. Many start out enthusiastically, only to give up after a few minutes, frustrated by the puzzle’s complexities.

You could say the crowd in today’s Gospel is treating Jesus like a kind of puzzle. They can’t seem to figure him out. He was a prophet, no doubt. But he said and did things that stretched their laws and traditions in uncomfortable ways. What did he mean about being the “bread of life” (John 6:35)? How could he do things that only God could do, like heal the sick or forgive sins? They couldn’t get their minds around him because they hadn’t yet started thinking “outside of the cube.”

Still, you have to admire their tenacity. Even when Jesus gives them an answer that they don’t understand, they try a different tack. “When did you get here?” “What can we do to accomplish the works of God?” “What sign can you do?” They really want to know, and they’re not about to give up! And as we will see at the end of this chapter, no one was more tenacious than Peter. After having heard Jesus give so many baffling—and seemingly scandalous—answers, he decides to keep following him. “Master,” he asks, “to whom shall we go?” (John 6:68). There’s no one else who speaks with the same authority, passion, and love. All I can do now is stay with you until it all makes sense.

How tenacious are you? Sometimes we want to know exactly what God is doing in our lives—Should I stay at this job? Should I marry the person I’m dating? Why wasn’t my loved one healed when I prayed? Sometimes there isn’t a yes or no answer, and other times we just have to wait. Whatever happens, stick with it. Stick with Jesus, and you will be rewarded!

from wau.org