It is 4th August 2020. We celebrate the memorial of St John Mary Vianney, Priest. The readings are from Jeremiah 31:1-2, 12-15, 18-22; and the Gospel from Matthew 15:1-2, 10-14
Our choices are influenced by the voices we hear. Hope is the only choice that allows us to follow the Lord’s voice be healthy integrally. Hope gives the courage to face it all. Whatever the darkness that engulfs us, yet God can shed the light of hope always. Without anything we can live in this world not without hope.
If we listen to the voice of the Lord, we all make better choices.
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me; and I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish, and no one shall snatch them out of my hand.” (Jn.10:27,28).
There are innumerable voices we hear every moment. Most of them are painful, hopeless, sickly, and filled with suffering and fear. But “I keep the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.” (Ps.16:8).
You know the story of the frogs in the well. There were hundreds of frogs wanted come out of the well. Sadly, each one was blaming and passing judgement on each other pointing their vulnerabilities and weakness. But one frog tried and tried amidst all these condemnations around and succeeded to come out of the well. Someone asked the frog how it was possible. The frog replied with a sign language that it could not hear.
In the first reading Jeremiah points out that the captivity was the result of not listening to the voice of the Lord. God is willing to restore their lives in so far as they would heed the voice of the Lord. We are God’s people by constantly listening and learning from the Word of God. “Now therefore, if you will obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my own possession among all peoples; for all the earth is mine.” (Ex. 19:5). St. John Maria Vianney encourages us telling, “How good is our God! When we can no longer come to Him, He comes to us.”
The responsorial Psalm acclaims, “The Lord will build up Zion again, and appear in all his glory.” (Ps.102:16).
In the Gospel, Jesus invites us to keep our hearts clean in what we listen. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” (Mt 5:8) To meet God or devil depends on what we bring out from our hearts and lives. “Not what goes into the mouth defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a person.” (Mt.15:11). When we have stopped doing good, we have started finding fault with others. Let us be aware of those self-defeating voices around and allow the Holy Spirit to bring out the best in us. May you have a lovely day. God bless you.