Suy Niệm Tin Mừng
thứ Bẩy Tuần thứ 18 Thường Niên
Trong bài Tin Mừng hôm nay, cho chúng ta thấy là các môn đệ của
Chúa Giêsu đã không thể chữa lành cho một cậu bé bị động kinh. Phản ứng của
Chúa Giêsu lúc này có vẻ như nghiêm khắc; nhưng thực sự là Chúa đã nóng lòng, muốn
cứu cậu bé vì lòng từ bi và tình yêu thương của ngài. Chúng ta có thể nhận ra rõ
ràng là Chúa Giêsu đã thất vọng với các môn đệ của Ngài vì họ thiếu niềm tin,
và mối quan tâm của Ngài là cấp tốc để đáp ứng với việc giải quyết những nhu
cầu khó khăn của cha con cậu bé trong lúc khó khăn này. Với một lời Chúa Giêsu
quở trách thần ô uế vì đã gây ra nỗi khổ cho cậu bé này và Ngài ra lệnh cho thần
ô uế là “không bao giờ được trở lại và ám hai cậu bé này nữa".
Chúa Giêsu nói với các môn đệ rằng họ có thể "dời được ngọn
núi" nếu họ có niềm tin vào Thiên Chúa. Cái biểu hiện để "dời ngọn núi
đi nơi khác" là một cụm từ phổ biến của người Do Thái thường dùng để ám chỉ
cho những việc làm quá khó khăn, ngoài trí tưởng tưởng của con người. Một người
thầy khôn ngoan, là người có thể giải quyết những vấn đề khó khăn đã được gọi
là một người "dời núi". Nếu
chúng ta cầu nguyện với niềm tin trông cậy vào Thiên Chúa, thì Ngài cũng sẽ ban
cho chúng ta phương tiện và chỉ cách cho chúng ta để vượt qua những khó khăn và
những trở ngại. Với đức tin và sự tin tưởng phó thác vào Thiên Chúa, chúng ta sẽ
không còn phải sợ sệt và lo ngại khi chúng ta gặp phải những thử thách, khó khăn
và thất vọng .
"Lạy Chúa Giêsu, xin Chúa củng cố đức tin của chúng con để chúng con biết đặt niềm tin vào quyền năng
cứu độ của Chúa. Xin hãy cho chúng con
biết tự tin và có sự kiên trì, đặc biệt là trong những lời cầu nguyện. Và giúp
chúng con biết mang lại tình yêu và chân lý cứu độ của Chúa đến với những người
mà chúng con sẽ gặp hôm nay và ngày mai.".
Meditation: "Nothing will be impossible
to you"
In this Gospel incident
the disciples of Jesus fail to heal an epileptic boy. Jesus' response seems
stern; but it is really tempered with love and compassion. We see at once
Jesus' dismay with the disciples' lack of faith and his concern to meet the
need of this troubled boy and his father. With one word of command Jesus
rebukes the evil spirit that has caused this boy's affliction and tells the
spirit to "never enter him again".
Pray
with expectant faith
Jesus tells his
disciples that they can "remove mountains" if they have faith in God.
The expression to "remove mountains" was a common Jewish phrase for
removing difficulties. A wise teacher who could solve difficulties was called a
"mountain remover". If we pray with expectant faith God will
give us the means to overcome difficulties and obstacles. When you meet
trials and disappointments how do you respond? With faith and trust in Jesus? "Lord Jesus, help my unbelief! Increase
my faith and trust in your saving power. Give me confidence and perseverance,
especially in prayer. And help me to bring your healing love and truth to those
I meet".
What kind of faith does the Lord expect of us,
especially when we meet set-backs and trials?
Inevitably there are times when each of us
disappoint others or disappoint ourselves when we suffer some kind of set-back
or failure. In this Gospel incident the disciples of Jesus fail to heal an
epileptic boy. Jesus' response seems stern; but it is really tempered with love
and compassion. We see at once Jesus' dismay with the disciples' lack of faith
and his concern to meet the need of this troubled boy and his father. With one
word of command Jesus rebukes the evil spirit that has caused this boy's
affliction and tells the spirit to "never enter him again".
Pray with expectant faith
Lord Jesus, help my
unbelief! Increase my faith and trust in your saving power. Give me confidence
and perseverance, especially in prayer. And help me to bring your healing love
and truth to those I meet
Epriest
Introductory Prayer: Lord Jesus, I believe you want me to have faith in you, faith
that hearkens to your words without any second-guessing. I hope in your words,
not relying solely on my strength or reasoning. I love you. You continue to
astonish me by showing me that your ways are not my ways.
Petition: Lord, give me the grace to trust you.
1. Never a Dull Moment: Just before this event, the apostles were with Christ at the
Transfiguration. Have you ever come out of a retreat on fire to change the
world, and then the unexpected cross comes your way – a negative comment, a
temptation you have not had before, a tragedy in the family? You were in the
clouds surrounded by God’s glory, and then you came crashing down to the
reality of this world. Let the moments of glory be your strength to face and
persevere through all the challenges that lie ahead. We have to be strong. We
have to keep moving ahead even though we seem to have bullets flying by our
heads, as do soldiers in war. We have to have faith.
2. Genuine Faith: The apostles go out and think they can cure people, but they
forget the secret ingredient – faith. It is not the apostles who are doing the
work; it is God working through them. Could it be that they had forgotten this
fact and fell into presumption? How often do we have a great time at prayer,
only to walk out the door and return to our self-centeredness? We have no power
aside from Christ. Put your faith into action. Make sure your actions are done
with Christ and through Christ.
3. Looking Back: Let’s move forward to the time when Peter looked back on all
these occurrences and realized how patient our Lord had been with him. He also
saw Christ’s merciful love to all people. Do I find daily nourishment in seeing
how patient and merciful our Lord is? Do I often lose my cool and get anxious
simply because I do not know how to deal with others’ faults or with people who
clash with me? Is it tough for me when people do not see the obvious? Am I
short-tempered with others, not dealing well with their shortcomings and failures?
Turn to Christ. Look at him, see his simple smile and recall how long he waited
for you to look him in the eyes and change your ways.
Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, you always had your hand stretched
out to me, but often I used my hands for my endeavors. Take me by the hand now,
and lead me where you want me to go.
Reflection: old
year
The first reading from the book of
Deuteronomy (Dt 6: 4 – 13) reminds Israel of their covenant to love and serve
God "with all [their] heart, with all [their] soul and with all [their]
strength."
We cannot be Christians only on
Sundays, only while we are in church, only when we are in prayer meetings, only
when we are around people we like or only when it is convenient for us. We are
to be Christians in every thought, word, and deed and in every situation we
face each day of our lives.
We aim to reach heaven and see God
face to face, but not for ourselves alone. Our role as parents and as
Christians is to teach our children about God, how to develop a personal
relationship with him, and to love him with their whole being. We need to
imprint in their minds and hearts that everything comes from God, their
talents, their intelligence, everything that they own. Their current position
in life is not out of their own doing but because God gave them the capacity
and the tools to succeed. Therefore, we owe it to God to serve him and offer
our entire lives for his greater glory by serving others. This is our mission,
that others may hear the Good News, experience it in their lives and see God
face to face at the end of time.
How can we be reminded of God's
faithfulness and love for each of us, to help develop a personal relationship
with him? Prayers during the day when the Spirit leads, reading of Scriptures
which remind us how God protected and healed his people, partaking of the
Eucharist during mass, and the unconditional love of family and friends all
point to our one God, one Father who loved us first.
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