Daily Manna sharing
Date:
Sept. 30, 2015
Gospel:
Luke 9:57-62
The
Cost of Following Jesus (Luke 9:57-62)
57 As
they were walking along the road, a man said to him, “I will follow you
wherever you go.”58 Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.”
59 He said to another man, “Follow me.”
But he replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”
60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.”
61 Still another said, “I will follow you, Lord; but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.”
62 Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.”
Reflection:
The
word “follow” has a lot of meaning
and can be defined as to obey, to imitate/copy, to act accordingly, to
understand, to carry out and to become an example. To name a few, Mother Mary
and Jesus are the best examples that we all should follow and strive to become.
With how they said “Yes” and allowed God to work in their life was a testimony
on how they trusted and had faith with His plan for them despite the unknown
circumstances.
I
remembered in a previous conference when a speaker told us that we are an “OFW”
and everyone agreed. We were thinking that OFW means “Overseas Filipino
Worker”. In fact he was right because in the eyes of our loved ones and fellow
Filipinos – we are OFWs! We are the new heroes of our nation. Well in contrast
to what we know, the speaker gave us an uplifting meaning of what an “OFW” is.
He said that we are an “OFW” and we should be “Obedient Followers and Witnesses
of Christ”. From what he said, everyone pondered and realized he was right. God
sees us differently and we must be confident knowing we are His sons and
daughters. We were called for a purpose and He wants us to live our life as an
“OFW of and for Christ” to others who are the least, the lost and the last.
In the
Gospel when Jesus said, “Follow me”,
He did not literally mean to just keep following him and do nothing. What He
wanted us to understand is that in following Him, we have to deny ourselves, we
have to trust and do what He ask us to do regardless how easy, difficult or
conflicting the task will be. Jesus affirms us that in following Him, He will
also take care of our needs. He assures us that whatever we ask in His name
will be granted in God’s perfect time. So when He tells us to go, let us be
confident that He knows what He is doing and He believes in our capacity.
Brothers
and sisters, we are destined for greater things and God continues to knock in
our hearts. Let us answer the call and become His instrument to others. Let us
set aside our unworthiness, be healed of our pains, ask forgiveness, be renewed
and be empowered by His mercy and grace. May we prepare our hearts to love
others more just as He first loved us. In our journey as followers and servants
of God, our mission is challenging and difficult but He affirms us that we are
not alone. When we need Him, let us come to Him through prayer and rest. As one
Church, together let’s work and strive to become obedient followers and
witnesses of Christ wherever we are and even to the ends of the earth because
we were created to be like Christ! With God’s grace, we can!
And
with this may God be praised! Deo Gloria!
Guide question:
How can I be an obedient follower and witness of Christ?
