« Do all things without murmuring and arguing so that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world » (Phil 2:14-15).
Being a Christian means believing with our whole heart that God can do all things. It means living a life of joy and kindness, a life of testimony to the power of God working mightily in our feeble frames.
The world is in need of Christians whose lives testify to the light of Christ. The world needs a clear evidence of our joy, inner peace, and readiness to love and forgive. The Lord wants us to be courageous in the face of death and evil like the present pandemic we face.
Joy comes from believing that the Light of God shines even in the shadows of tragedy and pain. The joyful are patient with God, others, and the world. Those who are grateful to God for little things, will see even greater signs of God’s work as they hold on in faith…
But patience is not simply folding our hands and waiting for God without making a response. John the Baptist directs his impatience to God when he sends his disciples to inquire whether Jesus is the One he was waiting for. He does something.
If we Christians live colorless lives; if we do not show true kindness; if we do not recognize Jesus in the poor; if we crumble in the face of crises; then the world will find it hard to believe that we have a power in Christ, the assurance of grace that is greater than our problems.
We do not know what God plans for us or how long we will live; but faith tells us that God’s plans for us are good, while hope moves us to God’s plan. St. Paul captures the texture of this hope in his Second Letter to the Corinthians, “Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”
Questions for Meditation
Does my life, today, testify to the light of Christ? Will I renew my inner being today by placing all my TRUST AND HOPE in God?
Prayer
I thank you Lord for the light of your grace that shines continuously on my path of life. Where there is darkness, may I be a source of light; where there is misunderstanding, may I bring peace; where there is doubt, may your light enlighten our way so that we may embrace your truth. Amen.
