As I read the Gospel for today (Matthew 16: 13-16), I couldn’t help, but notice that it was very similar – almost identical – to the Gospel last Sunday. This made me remember the Contemplation that I had during the GTA household, and when I looked back to it, I was refreshed with what the Lord had to say…
(Contemplation on Luke 9: 18-24):
As I contemplated, I noticed that I was first the air. I was flowing around the scene… around Jesus as he spoke to the disciples, and even around the disciples themselves. Jesus knew I was there, but he did not say a word. It was as if he wanted me to just witness to what was happening. I read it another time and I found myself being a bird. I sat on a branch of tree nearby. Again, he knew I was there and so did the disciples, yet, they didn’t budge. It was only him who noticed who I really was… that I wasn’t just a bird… and he did not say a word. I decided to read it again, and found myself being led to the verse prior to the reading itself (Luke 9:17 – “And they took up what was left over, twelve baskets of broken pieces”) and found myself being one of the pieces of broken bread. I read it a fourth time and found His message:
We must witness in silence, and grow silently in Him in our own brokenness. Sometimes, it is in this humbled silence that His message is proclaimed strongest, and the loudness of our SELVES is the very thing that stops us from hearing this proclamation. (“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” – 2 Corinthians 12:9)
The fourth time I read this, I found myself being a “camera man”, almost. I didn’t really know what I was… I wasn’t a bird, or the air, or a piece of broken bread; I was just a presence, knowing what would happen. This then led me to think… maybe He wanted me to see all of this to see Him. He wanted me to see and understand that when He looks at us, it is neither past, present, or future. He is just that presence that we know. At all areas of our lives, when we are listening, watching, learning, speaking and even at the times when we are broken, He is always there. He already knows what is going to happen, so we need not to worry nor try to comprehend all, but trust. Every piece of our lives is a piece of our love story with God… a piece of the story that tells how we came to Him and how we, at our own pace, are made in His image and likeness. And in all the brokenness and simple events, it all becomes extravagant with the Lord.
No matter what identity we have, we are always made in Him. That’s probably why regardless of whether his name was Simon or Peter, he rejoiced because he knew that he was chosen by the Lord. And that is probably why no matter what he did in his past, Saint Paul loved and proclaimed, even to his death because he heard the Lord’s call and knew that out of unconditional love, He chose him. In one way or another, we are chosen.
“Upon this rock I will build my church.” – Matthew 16:18
In You, Lord, all is simple…
In You, Lord, all is perfect.
Happy Feast Day, Sts. Peter and Paul!