It is 15th March 2019. The readings are from Ezekiel 18:21-28; and the Gospel from Matthew 5:20-26. God is very much interested in our interior conversion than an outward appeasement. The presence and power of sin weakens our souls and eventually kills us if not confessed. God hates to see a sinner being swallowed in by sin gradually. The vicious circle of sin spreads so silently and poisons the thoughts and ways of a person. We keep God away from us or we are away from others by the presence of sins in our life. God’s forgiveness for all those who follow the Law of God and willing to be converted. Without reconciliation, we have no life in ourselves. In the first reading, the prophet Ezekiel teaches us that our God is God of love at the same time God is God of immaculate justice. God does not ignore a good person who tries to deal with the sin and God does not close God’s eyes towards the evil person who continues to sin and leading others to sin as well. Bringing ourselves and others closer to God is the purpose we are still believers. We do not behave like childish way in blaming God calling God unfair when our actions and thoughts are far from God. We need to live up to God’s standards and a virtuous life. God does not need to dance according to the tune we play. Who is the person giving us the courage to sin in our life? Whom do we rely mostly to be far from God? The responsorial Psalm introspects, “If you, O Lord, should mark our guilt, Lord, who would survive?” (Ps.129:3). The Gospel reminds us to be holy by being consistently intense in showing love, mercy and compassion more than others. Our holiness needs to be profound not peripheral to please someone rather than to come closer to God. Our holiness depends upon how much we allow and cooperate with God to do what God intends to do anyway. Moving constantly away from self-centred life to God-cantered life is indeed a holy life. brooding bitterness against the other poisons the soul and convinces our soul to live without God’s guidance. Uncontrolled anger potentially leads to murder in the heart. We all like to strengthen relationship with the others. We cannot strengthen any relationship until we break the bonds, the clutches, the shackles of slavery in lustful and pleasure-seeking relationships. Lent is the time in which God looks at the heart in which what we have than what we carry to have show off during the offertory. When our friend is doing evil, we need to correct our friend to return to Lord. We need to put things in place and get reconciled before we face God. We cannot please and serve God without being in good relationships with the others. May the Lord kindly bless our personal conversion so as to keep the conversation with God and others going fruitfully. May you have a good day. God bless you.