With God, Nothing Is Impossible! Part 1
I realized that my last few entries have been very faith driven. Well I guess the reason for this reflects the situation that I am in ; a situation where you feel you have done your best, you have given your everything and yet things are just so hard for you. All around you, Giants are trying to devour you and bring down your spirits. I had the opportunity to watch a very powerful movie called Facing the Giants during my commute rides to work and back. The movie for me was quite apt and it really inspired me to dig deeper ; first to remember those moments where God really delivered me when all seems impossible. Yes I have had those moments in my life!
The problem with that, as what I wrote in my last entry on Peter and his doubting faith despite seeing the Master perform miracles in front of him, is that like Peter, I too sometimes doubt. It isn’t that I don’t love God or anything like that. Rather, the question “Can I really be sure God will deliver me?” tends to often loom into my mind.
Which brings me to my 2nd reflective point : You don’t give up on a God that Does Not Give up on you! While I know this deep in my heart, too often the howling winds and the treacherous weather clouds my firm trust in my God. But that’s the whole point of building faith and trusting in God isn’t it? So that during stormy seasons, we can lean on him and see His glory unfold.
And so I guess I would consider the next few entries that I am gonna write over the next few days as sorta of a “taking-stock” of God’s wonderful blessing on my mind. I find that I do get much strength when I am reminded of God’s saving grace in my life. Just as how God had spoken to the Israelites, reminding them that He delivered them from Egypt and that He is their God and for them to trust in Him, in a way writing all this down is somewhat similar. It’s to remind myself of what God has done and what more He can do in my life.
Saving faith
I often find it quite interesting whenever people often remark or comment that the God of the Old Testament is very different from the God of the New Testament. This dicthotomy is known as Marcionism and it was condemned as a heresy in the early formation of the church's life.
I was just pondering today on today's readings where God invites all to participate in his salvation plan. I'm not going to qoute scripture and all that here but I do want to take a moment to just reflect on today's reading. God's plan for salvation is for all.
I had to admit it did get me thinking for a while as I was sitting down in the pew. I was hoping the priest would shed some light into the gospel reading but sadly that wasn't the case as he was talking on something else. Anyway that didn't deter me from thinking about it during the "homily".
The aspect it got me thinking was more along the lines of me being a sinner and unworthy of God's favour. Over the last couple of months, though it has been tough on me, God's grace and favour has been upon me. Despite my shortcomings and my failures to live the Christian life, God has been very merciful and generous to this rut. Sometimes I do feel that I am unworthy of God's grace. Afterall aren't we thought that as we reap so we sow? I mean isn't that how we treat our relationships with friends around us? I scratch your back. you scratch mine?
And yet, God, who is known to be all good and all knowing, in his great mercy and generousity grants us blessings, despite us failing to earn it. Despite our empty promises to God, our failed resolutions to be a better son or daughter to God, God in his infiite love is still able to bless us. People often admire those who have big hearts and are able to give lovingly and freely to help others. I think the one who has the biggest heart is God. Cuz despite of our reapeated shortcomings, God is still able to look past our mistakes and come to our aid (Psalm 91). As the foreign woman (Cannanite) begged Jesus repeatedly to heal her daughter, Jesus, moved by compassion and her faith, eventually gave in. Jesus could have easily ignored her. He could have just refused to listen. But the woman's persistant cry and her humility is what saved her daughter's life. (Read Matthew 15)
How many of us are like that? We all have our needs, and we do bring it to God, but how many of us are humble enough to approach our Lord like the foreign Cannanite did? From this gospel's reading, it tells us that our God is one that is full of compassion. Even if we don't deserve it rightfully, God is able to look beyond our justification and reasoning and still bless us by listening to our prayers.
But that doesn't mean we are then allowed to just fall back to our old ways. Miracles are always preceded with conversion. When God touches our lives, how do we respond to Him? Do we just thank Him and revert to our old habits? Or is there a conversion in our hearts. A desire to follow Him because of what He did to us?
A new beginning
Just as nature goes through its four seasons, so do we go through our seasons in life. As the flowers and the leaves start to flood the landscape, we too have those moments in our lives. The bloomings of certain achievements we have achieved after a long horrible and cold winter.
Then in the summer, our gifts and talents are further developed, further refined and further appreciated. Like those who appreciate the beauty of nature's gifts in the summer, we too appreciate our gifts and talents. We use them to help others grow, and in the process help ourselves become better people.
Then comes the fall, where the leaves start turning yellow. Some leaves start to fall, just as how we too become tired and weary in our daily lives. The daily toils, the mundane routine brings us down and some even chains us to the ground. As the sun becomes dimmer in the fall, so do our hearts. We become less vivacious with life and more cynical. As each leaf falls, we too slowly fall. Until all that's left is just a bare tree.
You would think that the leaves would come back again. But then, the harsh realities of coldness and bitterness of the winter season consumes nature. Everything is barren. Hope is somewhat gone. Sun, what sun? The sun is there, but no heat can be felt. Likewise our hearts are there, but there is no life in it. The heartbeat is there, but it's beating without purpose or meaning. Something is desperately wrong here. Will winter ever go away we wonder, as our hearts braces itself for the long cold feeling ahead.
Surprisingly, nature allows itself to be consumed by the bittnerness and the icy cool winds of the weather. Nature may not like winter at all, but nature knows its necessary, because what comes after nature, when all the ice has melted, when the dark clouds have passed away is the birth of another new beginning.
Nature allows itself to be redeemed once again. And although nature might repeat itself, for us, we have the opportunity to use that redemption for something higher, something greater ,something better. The winter seasons in our hearts allows us to become better persons than we were in the past, allowing us to grow naturally in the past, and in essence, to have a new beginning.
Its sometimes amazing to see how we are very similiar to nature. Perhaps the Divine Creater had a plan afterall.
