Wednesday of the 4th Week of Lent
Is 49:8-15
Jn 5:17-30
“Yet even if these forget, I will never forget you.”
Today’s readings are nothing but love letters from our heavenly Father. In the first reading of the book of Isaiah, the Lord assures us that He will answer us; on the day of salvation He will help us, He promises to console his people, He takes pity on those who are afflicted, and even likens Himself to a mother who will never forget her baby suckling at the breast, and who cherishes the (child) in her womb. Such intimate images to help us see what God’s love is like. Then, in the Responsorial Psalm, we are reminded that The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in love, compassionate to all his creatures, faithful in all His words and loving in all His deeds. He remains close to all who call on Him from their hearts.
We all know that “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” (John 3:16) Whenever my heartstrings are tugged, I know that the Holy Spirit within has touched me. This makes me especially thankful that God has chosen me, one who was first born into a Buddhist family, to make me understand that He who created me, has called me by name, and I am his (Isaiah 43:1). Often, when I reflect on my life, I marvel at how far I’ve come since my conversion and encounter with Jesus. It doesn’t matter what my past was; more importantly, it’s the realisation. I now understand that he has searched me and known me before I was formed in the womb, He already knew me, and before I was born, He set me apart (Jeremiah 1:5). I feel so special. This must be the love that He has spoken of.
Honestly, all these words mean nothing if we don’t have a relationship with Jesus, without God’s graces and the gift of faith to believe and to follow Jesus. My perspective on life has changed somewhat dramatically. Think of the person who used to be ultra shy, who only knows a handful of people from church because I was mostly non-participative and a Sunday Catholic. The God I knew was one who is unreachable, silent and waiting – He’s up there and I am down here. But my encounters with Jesus have since changed me. He has shown me what love is and can be. He has shown me how to forgive, to be fearless, and to care for people I don’t even know (when I volunteer at Assisi Hospice). He has shown me so much about the true meaning of life and my real purpose. I know now that my life would have been so ‘blah’ and so meaningless “for what will it profit (me) if (I) gain the whole world but forfeit (my) life?” (Matthew 16:26). Forfeit my soul more like it. The things of this world that used to excite me, no longer do. Now, all I ever want to do is to bring Jesus to others and I am not afraid to speak up, to share my life with others. This is also why serving in the RCIA ministry feels so right. Over the years, God has certainly been preparing me for the things He wants me to do, to be in various communities, to have a wide network of friends, to learn intercessory prayers, to learn public speaking and gain more courage to speak up, to be able to catechise and help others know about our faith, and be bold to stand up for what’s right by my faith. This is all because He loves us first.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Cynthia Chew)
Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, I pray that more people will have a powerful encounter with you, because only then can they walk boldly in faith and trust in you. Fill our hearts with love and show us what it means to love our neighbour. Amen
Thanksgiving: Thank you Jesus, for loving us even when we don’t know how or don’t love you back.
OXYGEN 
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