Reflections of Faith
Read and be inspired by a reflection based on today's Gospel made by members of the Verbum Dei Family in Manila.
4/24/2018
Daily Guidelines: April 24, 2018April 24, 2018 Tuesday
Gospel : John 10:22-30 Draw Me Near“My sheep hear my voice: I know them and they follow me."
Our constant dialogue with God trains us to recognise the voice of the good shepherd. We learn to distinguish his voice from the other voices that appeal to us. There's so many noises around us, that it is easy to be lured away from him. Jesus illustrated further his desire for all people to be drawn to him as he spoke again about the relationship between the shepherd and sheep. But there are noises we hear everyday which could lead us to distraction if we are not careful to persevere in our daily walk with him. What lifts your spirit? What satisfies your soul? What gives you peace? Jesus’ sheep are eternally secure because the Father gave them to Jesus. “No one can take them out of the Father’s hand,” such is his love for us. Come, let us draw near to him.
4/23/2018
Daily Guidelines: April 23, 2018April 23,2018 Monday
Gospel : John 10:1-10 Enter In“I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.”
In the sheepfold, the shepherd functions as a gate, letting the sheep in and protecting them from thieves, weather or wild animals. Sleeping across the doorway of the fold to secure them. Just as the shepherd cares for it’s flock, more so Jesus who cares for us. He knows you and he desires to give you lasting peace and joy which the world cannot give. He invites us to “enter in” to the gate of eternal life. “A new life that will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God”(1Pt 1:23) Today he gives us a choice between life and death, “Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life. You can make this choice by loving the Lord your God, obeying him and committing firmly to him.” Deut 30:19) ... I say, enter in!
4/22/2018
Daily Guidelines: April 22, 2018April 22, 2018 Sunday
Gospel John 10: 11-18 ”I am the Good Shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me.”In today's Gospel, Jesus declares Himself as the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for his flock. Jesus tells the disciples that the Son of God will die in order to ensure that none of his flock would be lost. The Good Shepherd is concerned with all the sheep before all else. He would enter any danger zone to defend his sheep from wild beasts.
Today's Gospel invites us also to be a good shepherd to one another. Like Jesus who took up his life again in the resurrection and transfigured with glory, we too should take up our life again, transformed and renewed by grace. Let us not only admire the Good Shepherd, we should also honor Him by being good shepherds ourselves.
4/21/2018
Daily Guidelines: April 21, 2018April 21,2018 Saturday
Gospel John 6: 60 - 69 Lord, to whom shall we go?Life is made up of many choices - whether big or small, you have to choose. Choose where to go, what to eat, what to wear for OOTD or what you want and our choice will define us.
In today's Gospel, people had a hard time accepting the word of Jesus, they had difficulty accepting and believing on what Jesus was saying. Many of them chose to leave and no longer follow Him. Then Jesus asked his disciples "will you also go away? Peter can choose to go away like the other disciples but he trusted, believed and acknowledged that Jesus is the Messiah the one that God had sent. The Gospel invites us to be like Peter in believing and trusting in Jesus. In your journey of faith with Jesus, never lose the choice to trust and believe in Him.
4/20/2018
Daily Guidelines: April 20, 2018April 20, 2018 Friday
Gospel John 6: 52-59 ”Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.”In today's gospel Jesus says that His flesh is true food and His blood is true drink, whoever eats His flesh and drinks His blood remains in Him and He in them.
By giving Himself to us as food, Jesus desires to become one with us and at the same time, He gives us a way to show our desire to be one with Him--by receiving Him in our heart and body in the form of food, the bread and wine. Jesus wants to be fully united with us as He gives His body and blood for us. The Eucharist is not just remembering what Jesus did, it is also the source of our strength to do what He has done. It is a call for us to share our lives, to give ourselves and to become in some way the body and blood of Christ for others--that seeing and listening to us they may see and listen to Him.
4/19/2018
Daily Guidelines: April 19, 2018April 19, 2018 Thursday
Gospel John 6: 44-51 ”The bread I shall give is my flesh, and I will give it for the life of the world. “In today's gospel, Jesus declares that He is the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that He will give is His flesh for the life of the world. (cf. Jn 6:51)
The Eucharist is the loving gift of Jesus through which we remember his Death and Resurrection. When we partake with the Eucharist in the Holy Communion, Jesus feeds us with His body and blood becoming fully present to us through the bread and wine. But the Eucharist is not meant to be just something that we receive, it must become a way of life for us as Jesus Himself gives His life for the world. In the Gospel, Jesus invites us also to be the bread for the world that could be broken and shared for others so they would also have life.
4/18/2018
Daily Guidelines: April 18, 2018April 18, 2018 Wednesday
Gospel John 6:35-40 ”I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall never be hungry and whoever believes in me shall never be thirsty.”In today's gospel Jesus foretold a marvel when he claimed that He is the bread of life: whoever comes to Him shall never be hungry and whoever believes in Him shall never be thirsty (cf John 6: 35).
Jesus meant His words. At the last supper the night before he died, he held bread in his hands and said to his friends "This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me (cf 1Cor 11:24) Ever since then, we come together to share a meal and be fed with a bread and wine that is Jesus himself. Are we aware that we receive Jesus every time we take the Eucharist in the Holy Communion? The bread that God gives us in the Eucharist is not a temporary food to satisfy our stomach but to satisfy our soul.. In receiving the Eucharist, we receive Jesus and enter into communion with Him. Through the Eucharist, Jesus becomes the bread of life offered to give us eternal life.
4/17/2018
Daily Guidelines: April 17, 2018April 17, 2018 Tuesday
Gospel: John 6: 30-35 What sign do we need for us to believe?In today's gospel, people ask Jesus to perform a miraculous sign so that they may see and believe. It is something that even after experiencing the saving power of God towards their history and after waiting for thousand years, they did not accept the Messiah that God sent them.
In our personal lives there are also moments that we seek and ask the Lord to give us a sign to see His miraculous ways before we believe in Him. Jesus in today's Gospel, invites us to believe in Him, the one whom God has sent. If we only knew him deeper, we would understand that we need no more sign than him.
4/16/2018
Daily Guidelines: April 16, 2018April 16, 2018 Monday
Gospel John 6:22-29 Work then, not for perishable food, but for the lasting food which gives eternal life.It is necessary for us to persevere for our material needs. Of course, we need to eat, to drink and to wear clothes in order for us to live in our daily lives, but are we also persevering to gain eternal life?
In today's Gospel, Jesus told the people to work for the "lasting food" which gives eternal life. And this lasting food in the Gospel refers to Jesus Himself - the bread of life. Believing in Jesus and in His word would mean salvation for us. Our lives were not only meant for survival, we are meant to be saved by the Christ - by Jesus Himself. Jesus invites us to be faithful in Him, the one whom God has sent to save us and lead us to eternal life.
4/15/2018
Daily Guidelines: April 15, 2018April 15, 2018/ Sunday Gospel: Lk 24:35-48 “Peace be with you”Just like the two disciples, do we doubt Jesus’ presence because we do not see Him physically? How and where do you see Him?
The two disciples were more focused on His death, rather than His Rising. Like us, when overcome with emotions and blinded by rage, or negative thoughts, we fail to see Jesus in what’s happening in the world around us. Shackled by anger and hatred? Do we feel the hopelessness rather than the hope? Let us allow Jesus teach us to recognize him, let us open our hearts even in the worst situations. Read the scriptures to know Him more, so the ups and downs of our journey are cushioned, and the humps and detours are easier to handle. |
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