DAILY HOMILIES #earth

We can achieve heaven on earth when we go out of our way to bring smiles to everyone around us. We can make God’s kingdom happen when we show care and concern for the welfare of everyone we meet. Someone once said the only difference between heaven and hell is the absence of love. When we hate one another, are self-centred, or desire the death and destruction of one another, we are living in hell.

Do not let the sun set on your quarrel. Jesus tells us: “As you go with your accuser before the magistrate, make an effort to settle with him on the way, lest he drags you to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and the officer put you in prison.” (Luke 12:58). The earlier you forgive and settle the case, the better. St. Paul writes: “Be angry but do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.” (Ephesians 4:26). The best time to quench a fire is when there is only a spark. The more it burns, the more difficult it becomes to quench.

Jesus is inviting us to invest in eternity and live in such a manner as to be worthy of heaven after our death. If you do not attain heaven, everything else is useless. Regardless of one’s length of days or riches attained, without heaven, one has only lived a wasted life. Go to the graveyard; you will observe that you cannot tell the difference between those who lived in affluence and those who barely survived. What truly matters is where we spend eternity; it is neither how much we gather nor how much we leave for our children. To die in a state of disconnect with God is the worst kind of death.

In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus says to us: “Come to me all you who labour and heavily laden, and I will give you rest… for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Are you restless? Bring the matter to Jesus. There is no problem that He cannot handle.

The book of Revelations may appear very difficult to understand but the message is very clear – God will judge the world and it is only those whose names are found in the book of life that will eventually merit heaven.

If your conscience is clear, you have no reason whatsoever to be living in fear. If it is not your time, nothing, nothing in heaven or on earth can kill you. You will walk on water and you will not sink. You will pass through fire and it will be cold. Your enemies will set different traps for you and you will scale through like breeze. Fear Not.

You are light; you lead, not copy. You do not follow the trends, you create trends. Light bulbs do not need speakers, they speak by doing their jobs. They don’t pretend. If you turn a light bulb on, it would continue to shine even if no one is in the room. Stop living a fake Christian life – actions speak louder than words. Shine even if no one is clapping. The widow of Zarephath didn’t have much but she had faith. She obeyed the command of Elijah even when it didn’t make sense and God rewarded her faith. Do you believe there is any value in being salt of the earth and light of the world today? Are you willing to obey God when it seems as if you have nothing to live on? Would you rather chase money or chase holiness? The choice is yours to make.