23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
Wis 9:13-18
Phi 9-10, 12-17
Lk 14:25-33
“So in the same way, none of you can be my disciple unless he gives up all his possessions…”
I believe that all of us are hoarders, even though you may claim that you are not, or that you do a ‘Marie Kondo’ once every three months. We just tend to collect more and more junk, and when it is time to make space, we find it so hard to throw things away.
When I want to clear some of my wardrobe, my thoughts invariably turn to, “Hmmm, I still think I will have use of this…” But if we don’t clear it, we will not be able to fill that space with something more important.
What Jesus tells us today is sobering. Can I give up all my possessions? Some of those possessions hold very fond memories. For example, my tie and school badge that I used in secondary school, that watch that my wife gave me on my birthday, or even that very warm gilet (that I have NO use for in warm and humid Singapore) that was given to me when I finished my first UTMB race in the French Alps.
These possessions remind us of a time when we were fit and strong, when we had the ability to buy expensive things, or even those times when we attained a certain achievement. And I know that in the back of my mind, these possessions are just material. Yes, they hold very fond memories, but if we were to think and contemplate a little more, were those achievements really due to our own abilities? Were those achievements due to our intelligence? Was it even due to a certain alignment of the stars and the moon?
I think it is not. I know that it is only through Jesus and the grace of God that we have what have. So, if Jesus tells us to give up our possessions, it is only right; as it is through God and His providence that we are able to have those possessions anyway. It is also Jesus who was with us each and every time.
I also believe that if we continue to hold on to those possessions, we would only remember OUR achievements, and this would most definitely contribute to our Pride, the most capital of all the capital sins. I was just listening to Bishop Barron’s weekly Sunday sermons, where something he said spoke to me. He quoted from Paul Tillich who said: “Pride is born of fear”. It is because we fear that we build up walls and barriers and thus draw all things into ourselves. This is also how we push away everything and everyone, and just focus on ourselves.
But, if we continue to focus on ourselves, then how can we focus on God? It is similar to the Jews when they were wandering in the desert. God told them to only collect the manna that they needed for that day, and nothing more. To instruct and teach them that God provides everything that we need and, not necessarily, what we want.
Can we do without God? We most certainly CANNOT. Should we remove everything that prevents us from communing with God? We should! But can we? That question remains unanswered, but I know that Jesus can truly fill that void; and when He fills that void, then we will not need anything physical, for His presence is the greatest treasure.
As I get older, the allure of collecting possessions — be they watches, bags, sunglasses — slowly loses its lustre. On a recent trip to Hong Kong, there wasn’t any motivation to go shopping at all. For there is nothing that I would want, or value more than my relationship with Jesus. So, this brings us back to what Jesus said — is it possible for me to give up all my possessions to be His disciple? The heart says ‘Yes’! But the mind is still unsure.
I am still a work in progress.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Calvin Wee)
Prayer: Heavenly Father, you give us all that we have. Grant us the grace to always remember that all our blessings come from you. That without you, we are nothing. We also pray for the grace to keep you in the centre of all that we do and that you will fill us with your love and enable us to live without fear. Amen.
Thanksgiving: Heavenly Father, I thank you for all the graces that You have blessed us with. We humbly ask our blessed mother, Mama Mary to pray for us and with us, that we may imitate her humility and to accept Your will in whatever we do. Amen.
OXYGEN 
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