15 February, Sunday — I choose Him. Again and again.

6th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Ecc 15:16-21
1 Cor 2:6-10
Mt 5:17-37

If you wish, you can keep the commandments, to behave faithfully is within your power.

Today’s readings are so rich — so much to ponder, so much to reflect on.

The passage from Ecclesiasticus feels like a quiet continuation of what God has been stirring in my heart these past days — the call to listen, and to choose what is better for us; what leads to peace. In my reflection on Friday (13 January), God reminded me to listen to His voice rather than guilt, old patterns, or unhealthy relationships.

God gave us the commandments not to bind or chain us, but to guide us — a moral compass to help us live wisely and well. How we choose to live our lives is ultimately up to us. We have a choice. And we also live with the consequences of those choices.

Today, He tells me again:

If you wish, you can keep the commandments… to behave faithfully is within your power.

But the Gospel also warns:

“The man who infringes even one of the least of these commandments will be considered the least in heaven.”

There is something deeply empowering and sobering here. God places the path of life before me, but He does not force my feet onto it. He offers guidance, wisdom, and boundaries — yet He honours my freedom.

He has set fire and water before you; put out your hand to whichever you prefer.

Fire or water — choose.

This speaks directly into the complex emotions I’ve been navigating around certain family situations (see Friday’s reflection). Today’s first reading gives clarity: choices bear consequences. Sometimes, division arises not from a lack of love, but from hearts that have strayed from truth.

Jesus, in the Gospel, takes this deeper still. He reminds me that the commandments are not merely external rules, but invitations to interior transformation. Before anger becomes action, before resentment becomes words, before desire becomes behaviour — something forms first in the heart. And it is in the heart that He asks me to choose.

These readings remind me that setting boundaries is not sin; it is often wisdom. It is choosing life. It is recognising that I cannot save someone who refuses to choose differently, and that peace is not found in returning to patterns that wound me.

Paul’s words reassure me that God’s wisdom is not the world’s wisdom. The world might expect sympathy without accountability, reconciliation without repentance, closeness without safety — but God offers a deeper wisdom to those who seek Him. A wisdom that leads to clarity, freedom, and right relationship.

In this season of ‘spring’, I feel God inviting me to be deliberate:

To choose thoughts that heal, not reopen wounds.

To choose boundaries that protect, not punish.

To choose truth over obligation.

To choose peace, even when others do not understand.

To choose Him — again and again — in the quiet of my heart.

Ecclesiasticus echoes back to me: “To behave faithfully is within your power.”

Not perfection. Not people-pleasing. Not carrying others’ burdens to my own detriment.

But faithfulness — to God’s call, God’s peace, and the person He is forming me to be.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Geraldine Nah)

Prayer: Father God, grant me the grace to choose You in every moment — not out of fear, but out of love. Open my heart to Your wisdom, that I may recognise the paths that bring life and those that lead away from peace. Strengthen me to choose thoughts, actions, and relationships that honour You and protect the heart You are healing. Teach me to walk faithfully, trusting that Your commandments are a gift that leads me towards wholeness and freedom.

Thanksgiving: Thank You, Lord, for the clarity and peace You plant within me. Thank You for reminding me that I am not powerless — that choosing faithfulness, truth, and healthy boundaries is within my reach. Thank You for guiding me gently, for honouring my freedom, and for leading me step by step into a life aligned with Your purpose. May I continue to choose You, again and again. Amen.