DAILY HOMILIES

Reflecting on the life of Prophet Elijah, St. James concludes, "The prayer of a righteous person has great power in its effects.” It is not enough to spend a whole night praying; pay attention to what you do when you are not praying (daily life activities) and strive for righteousness.

Accept people the way they are. Stop trying to change your spouse, your children or anyone at all. Everybody is unique; no two persons (not even identical twins) can think or behave alike. There will always be something you don’t like about someone, and you can do nothing to change that.

St. James tells us it is better to be poor than to enjoy stolen riches. We steal by refusing to pay our workers their just wages or by living in luxury (wastefulness) while millions suffer extreme poverty. In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus highlights the danger of scandal by saying it is better to be dead than to be the source of scandal for little ones (innocent minds).

Whenever you make any promise or plan to do anything, be humble enough to add “by the grace of God” or “If God permits.” In Psalm 20:7-8, we read: “Some boast of chariots, and some of horses; but we boast of the name of the Lord our God. They will collapse, but we shall rise and stand upright.” If you must boast about anything, boast of the name of God.

The devil will never tempt you with something you don’t want. Hence, we cannot completely blame the devil for our fall. For instance, Adam and Eve fell because they wanted to be like God. The devil exploits our desires (whether good or bad) by offering shortcuts.

Some children grow up not knowing their mothers, some have no respect for their mothers, some have abandoned their mothers and so on, but nothing can take away the fact that those women are their mothers. Even if you have no regard for Mary (or feel offended by those who do), as long as you believe that Jesus is God and didn’t fall straight from heaven, Mary is your Mother.

As the church was gathered in one place, praying and worshipping God, we are gathered today, and we all ask God for another outpouring of the Holy Spirit. More than ever before, the church today is in dire need of the Holy Spirit.

The spirit of competition is wired into our being; we want to be the greatest among our peers, classmates, siblings, fellow employees, business associates, etc. While this could motivate us to take necessary steps that bring about positive growth, it also has negative side effects.

Without love for God, the cross is a punishment, but when there is love in our hearts, the cross is worth carrying.

Apart from the Gentile converts, a large number of those who embraced Christianity were Jews who believed that Jesus was truly the long-awaited Messiah, but those who didn’t believe felt threatened and sought ways to end the spread of Christianity among Jews. However, in their attempt to stop Jews from converting to Christianity in their numbers, the Jewish authorities suffered many setbacks. One of such setbacks was their lack of unity.

Paul looked into the future while addressing the elders (pastors) at Ephesus concerning fake pastors whom he described as ‘fierce wolves.’ Jesus also saw the future when He spoke of the world’s hatred against His disciples. Today, this hatred no longer comes from external forces but from fierce wolves in sheep's clothing operating from within the church

The office is indispensable, but the office holder can be replaced anytime. No matter the position you occupy, there is someone who can take your place and even do a better job. Do your best, but take it easy; no matter how good you are, you cannot be there forever