Liturgical Colour : Green or White (Saturday Mass of Our Lady)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we all listened to the words of the Scriptures we are all reminded of the trust that each and every one of us ought to have in the Lord, believing in Him and His Providence, and not to worry about what we are to have in this life. God knows what we need, and He will give us what is necessary through various means, including through those whom we encounter in our daily lives so that we may gain what we need. God often blesses us in manners and ways that we may not fully understand and realise, but He did all these nonetheless, to care for us and to provide for us. We are never alone even in our darkest and most difficult moments, and this is something that we have to remember especially when we want to give up or are overwhelmed in life.
In our first reading today, taken from the Book of Genesis, we heard of the conclusion of the story of the family of the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob with the passing of both Jacob and Joseph in the land of Egypt. Jacob had been reunited with his long lost son Joseph in Egypt after earlier on Joseph’s brothers were reconciled and reunited with their brother. And if we recalled what we have covered in the earlier days, that the brothers of Joseph were jealous of him and were trying to kill him, and ended up selling him to slavers who brought Joseph to Egypt. God was with Joseph and made him to be appointed by the Pharaoh of Egypt as the Regent of his kingdom. And that was eventually how he was reunited with his brothers and then with his family including his father.
Jacob, after having arrived in Egypt with his whole extended family, eventually passed away in peace, after blessing all of his sons and their families as we heard in today’s reading. After he was buried back in his homeland in Canaan together with his father Isaac and grandfather Abraham, as we heard, the brothers of Joseph were worried that Joseph would treat them badly as how they had once treated him, and yet Joseph reassured his brothers that everything that happened truly occurred because it was all part of God’s plan, and all of their evil and wicked designs were turned into good things by the Lord. That was why Joseph did not hold any grudge against his brothers and was in fact happy to be reunited with them and his family.
Then, from our Gospel passage today, taken from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, the Lord spoke to His disciples, telling them about several matters, all of which reminding us that we are truly fortunate that we have God our Father Who has always loved us all at all times and in all circumstances, and we really should not take this love and grace for granted. The Lord was reassuring them all that God and His love are truly above all things, greater than anything that can harm any one of them, any earthly forces and the forces of the evil ones arrayed against them. God will take good care of all those whom He loves, that is all of us, and we have to trust in Him, in His constant love and providence.
Each and every one of us are truly precious and dear to the Lord, as the ones whom He had created out of His great and ever enduring love for us, and we truly have no need to fear or be afraid because God Himself will be by our side, journeying with us, holding us all up amidst our struggles and hardships in life. We are never alone in our endeavours, paths and efforts, and God is aware of everything that we are going through, all the good and bad ones, all of our fortunes and misfortunes. And He wants us all to trust in Him regardless whether we are experiencing good times or bad times. We must never lose faith in Him, and we must always stay by His side, following Him and remaining committed to Him at all times, remembering His love and providence always.enduring all things with God
From what we have heard in our Scripture readings, we are reminded that God has always been around in our lives, providing for us and helping us even in the most mysterious and unexpected ways and moments, and that is why we should really appreciate all the love which He has constantly shown us all these while. We should continue to love the Lord to the best of our abilities and at the same time, love our fellow brothers and sisters in the same way as well. This is what we have been called to do as Christians, as those whom the Lord had called and chosen, and whom He had blessed and guided in each and every moments of our lives, and we should love Him as best as possible, and love one another as love is the hallmark of our Christian faith and life.
Let us all as Christians be the ones to show God’s love and kindness, His ever enduring compassion for each and every one of us, through our lives lived with true and genuine faith, with fullness of love for each other and for all those whom we encounter in life. For this is what the Lord had called us all to do, and what He has entrusted to us, in being genuine examples of Christian love and generosity, compassion and care for one another, in a world where it is more common to encounter selfish actions, prideful attitudes, ego and ambition, all the things that we have commonly been exposed to. As Christians, we are called and reminded to be good and loving in all of our actions, words and deeds to one another, even to those who have hurt and made our lives difficult, and to be forgiving, just as how Joseph had forgiven his brothers for what they had done.
May the Lord, our most loving, compassionate and wonderful God continue to bless each and every one of us, and strengthen us all with His courage and power, with His love and compassion, so that we may continue to show love and compassion in our own lives, in our interactions with one another and in all the things that we say and do. Let us all continue to be the beacons of light and hope to our brethren, particularly those who are suffering and are in darkness. May God bless our every loving endeavours and efforts, now and always. Amen.
petercanisiusmichaeldavidkang 