TOTD, September 05-07

Your Faith Has Healed You

Faithless, scared, worried. Maybe that was your previous condition or your present one. All you can do is just think and think, without getting any solution. Maybe it’s about sickness, maybe it’s about financial problem, maybe it’s about finding someone special in your life.
Without faith, it’s hard for us to carry on joyfully in this life. So, let’s brace ourselves, be strong, and ask for more faith in Him. Hopefully we can get the faith like a lady from Matthew 9:22, so that Jesus can say, “ Your faith has healed you.” (-fon-)

Jesus turned and saw her. "Take heart, daughter," he said, "your faith has healed you." And the woman was healed from that moment.
--- Matthew 9:22

Don’t be Lazy!
One Sunday morning, maybe you’re too lazy to go to church. You’ve had a party on the day before, and you think that you might want to sleep some more. But then, the voice in your heart keeps telling you to go to church and finally the voice won! You go to church.
Once you’re there, you see this lady, old-with the help of her helper- and more importantly she’s on a wheel-chair, is concentrating on her prayers. Then, suddenly you feel ashamed of yourself. Even in such condition, the lady is still going to church diligently. While you’re in a very healthy and normal condition forget or neglect to do so.
The bible reminds us not to be lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what he has been promised.
Well, laziness could affect many areas of our life, to stop it we need to say No, do something good and fight it. Yes, laziness will come and go and it’s very normal, but we need to stay in a better attitude. Set aside the laziness, change it into diligent attitude. (-fon-)
We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.
--- Hebrews 6:12

Sunday Reflection by Fr. Gerry Keane, SJ
*** taken from St. Ignatius Church Singapore

How much we need our senses to be educated. “ Lord that I may see” is not necessarily the prayer at the physically blind alone. The eye can be greedy, envious, cynical and a host of other attitudes blinding it from the truth.
How much do I understand of the spoken word? How much of the other is gathered in the gaps between their spoken words? And when I speak what truth is expressed in the process? How much of the real me is expressed in my language? And what of touch? Is there healing, life-giving, as there was in Christ, in my hands and my embrace?
Where and how do I find beauty? Is it more available and obvious in the gilted “Celeb” than it isn in the despised and marginalized rag and bone man? Which would I more readily invite to dinner?
Today’s readings make for a humbling examination of conscience. Rarely do I consider my senses as windows of the soul. Windows that are in sad need of regular cleaning to admit and reflect the beauty of God’s word and, above all, to show me the inner loveliness of the unattractive poor. For them I can find compassion because I find my own poverty in the abuse of my senses.

Readings: Is 35: 4-7a, Jas 2: 1-5, and Mk 7:31-37