May the Lord give you peace. It is 12th February 2024. We reflect on James 1:1-11 and Mark 8:11-13.
Are we tired of being a Catholic or a believer in Christ?
Unless squeezed to the maximum, we will not get the full. Unless we are stormed by the violent winds of life, we will not be rooted deeply in the Lord.
The core existence of our lives cannot be experienced until we are splintered and sipped the utmost pain of life. Testing is inevitable to prove the best.
We are mostly tested by the storms of our lives to prove our allegiance to God and to root ourselves fabric of the community. Without God and the blessings of God, it is indeed impossible to face the storms of life.
Human skills and ingenuity alone are not sufficient to handle the force that gushes and slams us every moment of our lives. It is not privileged to be a believer, rather it is the privilege to go through trials and tribulations to prove our worth that makes us strong, perfect, pure, wise, and gradually makes us mature, complete, and fulfilled.
A Catholic who refuses to go through the furnace of purification for one’s salvation has nothing to provide for the community around them.
“Whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but a happy privilege; because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance.” (James 1:1).
The responsorial Psalm prays, “Let your love come to me and I shall live.” (Ps.118:77).
The Gospel responds to our quest saying that there is no sign other than Jesus himself. Repeatedly we have experienced the power and presence of Jesus in our lives through His loving interventions, yet we are looking for something else.
We are looking for someone else other than Jesus just the Pharisees demanded a sign other than Jesus.
Instead of surrendering ourselves, at times we suspect or doubt the power of God in His Only Son Jesus.
Let us joyfully allow ourselves to be tested to root our entire being in God alone.
May you have a good day.