Wednesday of Week 30 in Ordinary Time
Rm 8:26-30
Lk 13:22-30
“Yes, there are those now last who will be first, and those now first who will be last.”
Last month, I had the unique opportunity to be part of the Singapore team at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships (WMTRC) in Canfranc, Spain. I wasn’t one of the 20 athletes, but one of the four officials whose duties were to support the athletes’ logistics and to be part of their race crew.
The WMTRCs are organised once every two years and this year was the first time that Singapore sent a contingent. Before we even boarded our flights to Spain, we knew that we were already disadvantaged. All of us are ‘weekend warriors’, juggling day jobs and training for the WMTRC. What’s more, the highest hill we have in Singapore reaches only 163.3m above sea level, whereas the highest point of the race is 2,572m above sea level. Imagine the mountains that we have had to conquer just to toe the line with the world’s best trail/mountain runners.
Despite the overwhelming odds, our athletes performed to the best of their abilities and put up a very credible showing, coming in 33rd in the World and second in Asia. However, some of our athletes were not able to complete their races, and one or two of them even finished as the last participant in their races. The key was that every one of them flew our flag high and, in no way, let the country down. We are so accustomed by our Singapore upbringing that we must be the first in everything; however, this experience at the WMTRC showed that there is so much more than aspiring to be first all the time.
The one thing that I took away from WMTRC, was how our team stuck together through shared experiences, even sharing shoes and gear as a teammate’s luggage was lost in transit. There was a sense of camaraderie that I haven’t seen nor experienced since my National Service days. Everyone played their part, supported each other and this struck me that this must be how the early church must have experienced life after our Lord ascended into heaven.
The fledgling community huddled together, supported and provided for one another. Despite the hardships that they might have gone through, including the fear of persecution, death and betrayal, the church has grown from those humble beginnings to 1.4 billion members today. And we have the Lord Jesus to thank for His continued blessings and the examples of how He treated everyone around Him. Our Lord tells us, “to serve rather than to be served”, to seek the lower places that we may be exalted.
How often then, do we take on this attitude, and be served rather than to serve, in the communities that we belong to? Do we seek to be lauded, to be exalted, to be admired in our communities? I know that at times, I do unconsciously take on this attitude, especially when my pride leads me to believe that I am better than the people around me. My pride, oh my pride… The bane of my life.
I make no pretence — pride drives me forward. It makes me want to be a better person. However, it also makes me selfish, oblivious and uncaring. I do pray in the mornings for the Lord to not let my pride overshadow everything and become an unloving person to my family, my friends and my co-workers. Yet, I fail over and over again. And so, as I reflect on another year around the sun, this gospel comes at a very opportune time.
Perhaps this upcoming year, I should be more intentional in taking on more of the servant’s mentality, serving in the many communities that I belong to, and understanding that all of us have our own roles in these communities. And that by serving unselfishly, our communities can grow and in doing so, I can then grow too. Just as the community that was formed at the WMTRC, where we all had each other’s backs and only wanted the best for each other.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Calvin Wee)
Prayer: Heavenly Father, you are the Lord of heaven and earth. Grant us the grace to be like our Lord Jesus, that we may strive not to be first, that we may surrender our Pride and in so doing, grow in love for you and our neighbour. Amen.
Thanksgiving: Heavenly Father, I thank you for the many gifts and blessings that You have showered on me this past year. I thank you, Lord, for walking with me and for always being there when I fall. Grant me the grace to never walk far from you. Amen.
OXYGEN 
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