Monday, November 13, 2006
TUESDAY 32ND WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
NOVEMBER 14, 2006
TUESDAY 32ND WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME - YEAR II
TITUS 2:1-8, 11-14
Beloved: You must say what is consistent with sound doctrine,
namely, that older men should be temperate, dignified, self-
controlled, sound in faith, love, and endurance. Similarly, older
women should be reverent in their behavior, not slanderers, not
addicted to drink, teaching what is good, so that they may train
younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-
controlled, chaste, good homemakers, under the control of their
husbands, so that the word of God may not be discredited. Urge the
younger men, similarly, to control themselves, showing yourself as a
model of good deeds in every respect, with integrity in your
teaching, dignity, and sound speech that cannot be criticized, so
that the opponent will be put to shame without anything bad to say
about us. For the grace of God has appeared, saving all and training
us to reject godless ways and worldly desires and to live
temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age, as we await the
blessed hope, the appearance of the glory of the great God and of
our savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to deliver us from
all lawlessness and to cleanse for himself a people as his own,
eager to do what is good.
LUKE 17:7-10
Jesus said to the Apostles: "Who among you would say to your servant
who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the
field, `Come here immediately and take your place at table'? Would
he not rather say to him, `Prepare something for me to eat. Put on
your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink. You may eat and
drink when I am finished'? Is he grateful to that servant because he
did what was commanded? So should it be with you. When you have done
all you have been commanded, say, `We are unprofitable servants; we
have done what we were obliged to do.'"
REFLECTION
So often when tragedy befalls us or life becomes difficult we cry
out in protest "Why me? What did I do to deserve this?" as if God
owes us something. This attitude betrays a certain self-centeredness
and self-righteousness. We become the center of the universe. We
fail to realize that we are nothing, that we deserve nothing. We
have not asked seriously the question, "Where do I come from?" It is
out of God's infinite love that we exist. He created us and keeps us
in existence. Everything we are and everything we have is a gift
from God. God does not owe us anything; rather we owe God
everything. We are only servants. If God blesses us, it is out of
his generosity, not because of a duty.
The fulfillment of a servant is to serve his master, to realize his
master's wishes. A good master is not indifferent to his servant or
negligent in expressing his desires for the servant. He is genuinely
interested in helping the servant fulfill his purpose by giving him
a task to do. If we are God's servants, surely there is something
that God is asking of us. Like a good servant we must be attentive
to God's every desire and quickly respond. We cannot be a bad
servant who is sluggish and slow, hesitating at the Master's
command. Worse still we cannot be indignant, rejecting God's
command, presuming to deserve some favor or recompense. It is good
to ask ourselves from time to time, "What is it that God is asking
from me?"
We should be able to finish our life saying, "I am an unprofitable
servant; I have done only what I was obliged to do." It would be a
pity to have to say at the end of our lives, "I have done less than
I was obliged to do." Yet that many times is the reality of our
lives. We end up doing less then what we are obliged to do, never
mind being a generous person and giving God more than the minimum he
is asking from us. Would that we realize that our true happiness and
true fulfillment lies in doing God's will and that our doing less is
only a source of misery for our lives.
I am sure that we are aware how many times we have rebelled against
God. So often we think of ourselves as deserving happiness, or good
fortune, or an easy life. Let us pray for the grace to recognize our
nothingness. Let us try to appreciate the many blessings God has
given us as generous manifestations of his love, and not as
something that we deserve or have a right to. Let us be humble
servants ready to act at God's slightest command. Let us also accept
all the misfortunes and difficulties that come our way with the
humility of a servant who is not owed anything.
PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray ...
- for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the unborn.
- for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Prayer Intention: Dexter U. Yu
- Wedding Anniversary: Walter & Letty Siy
- Wedding Anniversary: Robert & Catherine Dy
- for world peace and reconciliation.
Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our
prayers and for those who need our prayers the most.
Have a good day!
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