23 January, Tuesday — Discerning God’s plan

Tuesday of Week 3 in Ordinary Time

2 Sam 6:12-15,17-19
Mk 3:31-35

“Anyone who does the will of God, that person is my brother and sister and mother.”

There are times where I hear some people use the phrase, “may it be God’s will that I get this opportunity”. I do enjoy hearing this phrase, but sometimes I do wonder if we can actually decipher and understand what God’s will for us actually is. The readings of today do give us a clue on how it is to be able to do God’s will.

The first fruit of doing God’s will is a feeling of joy. The difference between joy and happiness lies in the cause of the emotion and the length of time which one experiences. The cause of joy for David’s dance is due to the ark of the Lord returning to its rightful place. The ark represented the visible presence of God’s love to the Kingdom of Israel. This visible presence remains forever, despite the sin of the Kingdom and even of King David’s weakness. This suggests that if we discern accurately about how to do things which are in line with what God wants, the feeling of joy will continue to persist in our life.

The second fruit would be the presence of persecution. It seems strange that we get persecuted for doing the right thing; but doing the right thing means that it is the opposite of what sin stands for. In the Gospel, Jesus mentions that the person who does the will of God is his “brother, sister and mother.” In this case, Mother Mary is the perfect example of following God’s will. Mother Mary co-operated with God’s will and played an important role in the history of salvation. Her example enables us to have a guide on how we can achieve perfection on earth. This means that the ordinary Christian can reflect on how our Lady’s patience and virtue can help us to deal with the daily struggle of sin. We will be persecuted as Christians for doing the right thing. It is our forebearance and fortitude which will win over others their example of faith.

The life we have on this earth is short, but it does not need to be meaningless. It can be predicated on the tenets of charity and patience which Christianity is built upon. May we continue to hold the faith strong in our lives and demonstrate that faith through the expression of joy we possess.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Nicholas Chia)

Prayer: Jesus, help us to grow the seed of faith in our lives.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks for all the people who love us despite our flaws.