Fight to be close

He appeared first to Mary Magdalene. (Mark 16:9) 

Why Mary Magdalene? Why not his mother? Why not choose Peter or John or any of the apostles to be the first to see him after his resurrection? Mary was a surprising, even illogical choice to be his first witness. In Jesus’ time, a woman could not legally serve as a witness, so Mary’s testimony probably would not be taken seriously. 

Yet Jesus chose Mary, one of the least. But why? Maybe simply because she was there. And she was always there. She was there throughout his ministry. She was there at his arrest. She was even there when the apostles scattered in fear. She was there in the praetorium when the soldiers mocked and scourged him. She was there at the cross with his mother when they crucified him. She was there on Calvary when they took him down and laid his body in the tomb. Mary made it a point to stay close to Jesus because she loved him to the end. So of course she would be the first one to go to the tomb early Sunday morning. And of course, Jesus appeared to her!

Because she loved Jesus so much, Mary Magdalene took the risk that the apostles were unable to take. Perhaps she stood up to the guards and put her life in danger just to see Jesus’ body. She fought through her fear and sadness, just as we do sometimes. She put aside any sense of unworthiness she might have felt because she wasn’t his “real family.” She persisted until she found Jesus.

So what can we learn from Mary Magdalene? That it’s always worth it to try to stay close to the Lord. God rewards everyone who seeks him. He especially delights to reveal himself to the humble and lowly. So when you push through fear or grief or doubt in order to be near Jesus, you can be confident that he will bless you. In fact, he is already there; he is waiting to reveal himself to us.

Today and every day, fight to stay close to the Lord. Be there with him and persist in prayer, even when you don’t feel his presence. Talk to him during the day; ask him to help you sense that he is near. He is closer than you think.

“Jesus, I believe you are with me. Help me to stay close to you today.”

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

How poor are you?

Did not God choose those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom? (James 2:5)

Many years ago, a husband and wife felt called by the Lord to adopt needy children into their family. They wanted to care for children who had no other recourse, children who were facing a grim future. They decided against the first child offered to them: a healthy baby from a good home. “He’s not needy enough,” the mother said. “Plenty of other couples will take him.” Instead, they chose a daughter from a very poor country and a son with physical handicaps. 

By making such a generous decision, this couple showed that they were uniting their hearts with the heart of God, who has a “preferential option” for the poor.

We can easily identify with the behavior James describes in today’s first reading: warmly greeting the rich while dismissing or ignoring the poor. We all know what it’s like to shy away from the needy, whether their need manifests itself in physical handicaps, tattered clothing, or uncouth speech. We are tempted to be suspicious of strangers and outsiders. We find ourselves drawn to people who resemble us or who look like the kind of people we want to be. 

And yet the truth is, we are all needy before God. We are all poor and dependent on God’s mercy. We have nothing we have not received at his hand. Every one of our talents and gifts comes from his storehouse of grace and blessing.

James tells us that those who are poor are “rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom” (James 2:5). The point is not that God wants us to suffer grinding poverty and go without our basic needs. It’s that he wants us to see how much we depend on him and on each other, so that we can begin to build a kingdom of justice and kindness on this earth. Only the needy, only the “poor” in this sense, have room in their hearts for the Lord and his people. Only they will band together to build the kingdom.

So how poor do you feel today?

“Jesus, you chose to come among us as a poor man. Open my eyes to my poverty so that I can receive the riches of your love and share them with others.”

taken from wau.org

Freshness.

Jesus visited His hometown in Mark 6. As the story goes He could not perform a lot of miracles there, because of their lack of faith in Him due to their familiarity. They were familiar with His family members, upbringing etc.. It makes me wonder and consider the many ways in which we might have become so "familiar" with God that there is nothing so special any more. Do we go through the motions of church, worship or quiet time , without having an expectation of newness and frshness?

Today, God wants us to look at our relationship with Him. Has it gone stale or is it fresh like a morning breeze. If its like the former, He is asking us to revive it; To light a fire to it, to bring it alive. May our encounter with Him be fresh. May our relationship with Him be renewed every morning.

Passionate Lover.

Even if this should seem impossible in the eyes of the remnant of this people, shall it in those days be impossible in my eyes also, says the Lord of hosts? (Zechariah 8:6)

It’s the classic plot for a romantic comedy: A man is in love with a woman who doesn’t seem to know he exists. He goes out of his way to run into her, he sends her flowers, he writes love letters. And still she scorns him. He hates seeing how her other suitors leave her disappointed and empty. But he can’t envision life without her, so he continues doing everything he can to make her fall in love with him. Finally, somewhere in the depths of her heart, she realizes it’s meant to be. In the end, they ride off together into the sunset.

We may be a bit embarrassed to think that God loves us in a very similar way. He is jealous for us. Don’t worry; this jealousy is not the selfish, “green-eyed monster” type. It’s a jealousy that passionately wants the best for us. And that “best,” of course, is to be united with the Lord. We were created for him. Any other suitor, anything else that competes for our love, only threatens the “happy ending” that God has in store for us.

You may look at your life with some skepticism. You may not think you’re worthy of such passionate love from God. It’s easy to focus on the obstacles or the other “lovers” that have claims on our hearts. But thank goodness God doesn’t look at things with our eyes! He is ready to go out and fight all of his opponents: our sin, our guilt, anything that accuses us. He will stop at nothing to redeem us and make us completely his.

So let God woo you. As deep calls to deep, let him sweep you off your feet. There is no area in your life that he can’t win over by the power of his love. There is no element of your resistance that he cannot wear down. Just be still, and let him show you the beauty and peace that come from a life devoted to him. That’s how attractive he is!

“Lord, I am like the Beloved in the Song of Songs, hiding from you. As the Bridegroom of my soul, win me over with your single-minded devotion to me. I am yours!”

taken from wau.org

STRIVE!!!

 "Strive to enter by the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. " [Luke 13:24]

As I listened to this scripture reading in church today, my mind begun to wonder deeply,about what it means to strive. I wondered why Jesus chose those words to teach a lesson. Strive, according to the Marriam-Webster dictionary, is "to devote serious effort or energy" (emphasis mine). Again, John Gill's exposition/commentary said :"To 'strive', is to be diligent in the use of means; to search the Scriptures with care; to attend on the preaching of the word with constancy, neglecting no opportunity; to pray earnestly for spiritual light, knowledge, and grace; to contend with every enemy that opposes the salvation of the soul, as sin, Satan, and the world; to bear all reproaches and persecutions, and press through all difficulties, for the prize of the incorruptible crown: the metaphor seems to be taken from the striving, wrestling, and combat in the Olympic games, for a corruptible crown."  This intransitive verb derives its roots from the Anglo-French word- estriver, meaning to quarrel.

I believe that the Lord is calling us to a personalised fight/contention with our selves to enter into this narrow gate. A fight to discipline ourselves with the focus of having a deeper relationship with the Lord. You might be close to Him, but I believe that there is more ground to cover. The imagery of contention, fight, wrestle etc, is very apt because it shows that:

1. To develop a deeper walk with God, does not come easy: We must learn to deny ourselves of certain pleasures, eschew certain familiar behaviour and sometimes step outside our comfort zones. All these, do not come easy. We have to contend; for knowing God is not just attending church or church activities, but overcoming all odds in order to build a strong relationship with Him.
2. It must involve an effort: A serious wrestling match, is a showcase of energy and effort on the part of the contenders. To be able to walk through that door, we must invest energy, effort and time.

Today, the Lord is calling us into a deeper relationship with Him. However, we also need to play our role: we must STRIVE. Lets pray for grace and strength to carry out this command in order to attain the reward: to be in His presence forever.