Monday - May 15, 2017
GOD LOVES EACH OF US
AS IF THERE WERE ONLY ONE OF US.
~~ ST. AUGUSTINE
TODAY'S READINGS
May 15, 2017
Monday of the Fifth Week of Easter
Lectionary: 285
Reading 1ACTS 14:5-18
There was an attempt in Iconiumby both the Gentiles and the Jews,
together with their leaders,
to attack and stone Paul and Barnabas.
They realized it,
and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe
and to the surrounding countryside,
where they continued to proclaim the Good News.
At Lystra there was a crippled man, lame from birth,
who had never walked.
He listened to Paul speaking, who looked intently at him,
saw that he had the faith to be healed,
and called out in a loud voice, "Stand up straight on your feet."
He jumped up and began to walk about.
When the crowds saw what Paul had done,
they cried out in Lycaonian,
"The gods have come down to us in human form."
They called Barnabas "Zeus" and Paul "Hermes,"
because he was the chief speaker.
And the priest of Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance to the city,
brought oxen and garlands to the gates,
for he together with the people intended to offer sacrifice.
The Apostles Barnabas and Paul tore their garments
when they heard this and rushed out into the crowd, shouting,
"Men, why are you doing this?
We are of the same nature as you, human beings.
We proclaim to you good news
that you should turn from these idols to the living God,
who made heaven and earth and sea and all that is in them.
In past generations he allowed all Gentiles to go their own ways;
yet, in bestowing his goodness,
he did not leave himself without witness,
for he gave you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons,
and filled you with nourishment and gladness for your hearts."
Even with these words, they scarcely restrained the crowds
from offering sacrifice to them.
Responsorial PsalmPS 115:1-2, 3-4, 15-16
R. (1ab) Not to us, O Lord, but to your name give the glory.or:
R. Alleluia.
Not to us, O LORD, not to us
but to your name give glory
because of your mercy, because of your truth.
Why should the pagans say,
"Where is their God?"
R. Not to us, O Lord, but to your name give the glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Our God is in heaven;
whatever he wills, he does.
Their idols are silver and gold,
the handiwork of men.
R. Not to us, O Lord, but to your name give the glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
May you be blessed by the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.
Heaven is the heaven of the LORD,
but the earth he has given to the children of men.
R. Not to us, O Lord, but to your name give the glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
AlleluiaJN 14:26
R. Alleluia, alleluia.The Holy Spirit will teach you everything
and remind you of all I told you.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GospelJN 14:21-26
Jesus said to his disciples:"Whoever has my commandments and observes them
is the one who loves me.
Whoever loves me will be loved by my Father,
and I will love him and reveal myself to him."
Judas, not the Iscariot, said to him,
"Master, then what happened that you will reveal yourself to us
and not to the world?"
Jesus answered and said to him,
"Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.
Whoever does not love me does not keep my words;
yet the word you hear is not mine
but that of the Father who sent me.
"I have told you this while I am with you.
The Advocate, the Holy Spirit
whom the Father will send in my name—
he will teach you everything
and remind you of all that I told you."
******************************
True humility is acknowledging the good that you do while knowing and proclaiming that the true source of your goodness is the Holy Spirit.
Your good deeds, your giftedness, and the love that you share while doing good is the fruit of being made in the image of God. But we are all weak and vulnerable to sin; left to our own efforts, we look and act very unlike God. So, Jesus gave us his Holy Spirit to empower us to look like and act like our divine Father.
Even atheists cannot do good on their own. They too were created in the image of God. It is God's goodness within them that causes them to reach out to others in love.
In our first reading today, Jesus heals a lame man through Paul and Barnabas as they preach to the Greeks. The crowds cannot see Jesus; they see only Paul and Barnabas, so they interpret the miracle according to their pagan background -- they conclude that Paul and Barnabas are gods.
Paul and Barnabas do deserve some credit. They had to make the decision to do what God inspired them to do. They chose to trust God to work through them. Ministry is a partnership between us and the Holy Spirit.
For example, first Paul noticed the lame man. Immediately, he felt concern for him, like Christ. As he looked at the man, he discerned through the Holy Spirit that he was open to the healing love of God. So, loud enough for all to hear, Paul healed the man as a testimony of the power of Christian compassion.
When the people credited Paul for the miracle, how did he respond? Well, how would you or I respond? We'd probably say, "No, I didn't do anything special" -- which is our usual way of dealing with compliments. But not Paul. He knew that true humility means accepting the compliment while giving the credit to God. It's a partnership.
Paul explained that he and Barnabas were bringing good news about the real God. He did not "humbly" cut down his ability to preach, nor did he deny that he was capable of working miracles. He simply took the focus off of himself and put it onto God.
Every good deed that we do is evidence that God is working in us and through us. Humility means realizing that we are inadequate and likely to sin BUT thanks be to God he graces us with his holiness and therefore we can be extraordinary Christians. As it says in today's responsorial, Psalm 115: "Not to us, O Lord, but to Your name give the glory."
Never degrade yourself when complimented. It devalues God's work in you. Acknowledge your partnership with the Holy Spirit by using your life to help others put their focus on Christ.
--
God Bless You.....
KONKANI PRAYER GROUP - Abu Dhabi
"Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone" Mark 16:15
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