Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Hai Luke 21:1-4 Tuần 34 Thường Niên

 Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Hai Luke 21:1-4 Tuần 34 Thường Niên

Một món quà mà cho đi với một tấm lòng hận thù hoặc cho đi để phô trưng cái sự giàu có hay sự rộng rãi của mình thì món quà sẽ không còn cái giá trị nào của nó nữa. Tuy nhiên, một món quà cho đi với tình thương, với một tinh thần quảng đại và hy sinh, thì đó chính là món quà quý giá. Dù cho món quá đó nhiều hay ít không có quan trọng nhiều bằng cách cho của người cho. Người góa phụ nghèo có thể giữ lại đồng tiền xu của mình để mua một ít gạo nấu cơm cho cả nhà ăn, nhưng bà ấy đã cho đi tất cả những gì bà ấy có! Chính cả sự sống của bà và gia đình, Chúa Giêsu đã khen ngợi người bà góa này măc dầu bà ấy chỉ cúng chỉ có một xu cho đền thờ, Nhưng chúng ta biết đó là một khoản tiền đáng kể cho cuộc sống hàng ngày của bà ta, bởi vì đó là tất cả những gì bà ta có. Những gì chúng ta đóng góp, hay bố thí có thể là rất ít so với những người khác, nhưng nếu chúng ta đặt hết tất cả những gì chúng ta có vào hành động của Chúa, Thì vấn đề nhiều hay ít sẽ không còn là vấn đề nữa, Thiên Chúa biết mọi sự và Ngài có thể biến đổi món quá nhỏ bé thành món quà hữu dụng và những việc đó đã nằm ngoài tầm tay và sự toan tính của chúng ta.

            Lòng tốt của bà góa là một bài học tốt cho chúng ta là những môn đệ của Chúa Kitô. Chúng ta có thể sống quảng đại, như những người giàu có, bỏ những đồng tiền vàng vào hộp tiền (Lc 21:01). Tuy nhiên, số tiền lớn mà chúng ta dâng hiến vào đền thờ sẽ không có giá trị nếu chúng ta chỉ cho Chúa "những đống tiền dư thừa, những đồng tiền lẻ mà chúng ta có trong túi quần, túi áo", Cho mà không có tinh thần yêu thương, tự hiến, hay cho mà " không"cho hết chính bản thân mình. Thánh Augustinô nói: “Họ đã quan sát cái lòng hảo tâm "tuyệt vời" từ những người giàu có và họ ca ngợi những người đó và trong cùng lúc, họ có thể nhìn thấy bà quả phụ này, nhưng đã có ai để ý đến hai đồng tiền xu.?

            Ngưởi đàn bà goá đã cho Thiên Chúa tất cả những gì bà ấy có bằng với cả trái tim của mình. Bà không có tiền của vật chất, những bà đã dâng lên Chuá tât cả tâm hồn, và trái tím của bà, vì bà đã có Thiên Chúa trong trái tim của bà. Đó là việc tốt cần nên bắt chước hơn. Chúng ta nên hãy rộng lượng với Thiên Chúa và Ngài sẽ ban cho chúng ta nhiều hơn những gì chúng ta đã cho đi.

 Meditation: "She put in all that she had"         

Do you know the joy of selfless giving and love for others? True love doesn't calculate - it spends lavishly! Jesus drove this point home to his disciples while sitting in the temple and observing people offering their tithes. Jesus praised a poor widow who gave the smallest of coins in contrast with the rich who gave greater sums. How can someone in poverty give more than someone who has ample means? Jesus' answer is very simple - love is more precious than gold or wealth!

            Jesus taught that real giving must come from the heart. A gift that is given with a grudge or for display loses its value. But a gift given out of love, with a spirit of generosity and sacrifice, is precious. The amount or size of the gift doesn't matter as much as the cost to the giver. The poor widow could have kept one of her coins, but instead she recklessly gave away all she had! Jesus praised someone who gave barely a penny - how insignificant a sum - because it was everything she had, her whole living.

            What we have to offer may look very small and not worth much, but if we put all we have at the Lord's disposal, no matter how insignificant it may seem, then God can do with it and with us what is beyond our reckoning. Do you give out of love and gratitude for what God has already given to you?

"Lord Jesus, your love knows no bounds and you give without measure. All that I have comes from you. May I give freely and generously in gratitude for all that you have given to me. Take my life and all that I possess - my gifts, talents, time and resources - and use them as you see fit for your glory."

 Introductory Prayer: Dear Jesus, I believe that you have blessed me with life and with a vibrant faith. Thank you. I dedicate this time and prayer to you. I love you, and I offer you all that I am and all that I have with the desire to become a joyful gift to you.

Petition: Lord, teach me to share joyfully all that I have received!

1. Some Wealthy People: Jesus sat before the temple treasury. What did Jesus see as he looked on? He saw more than we do. He saw the heart. Wealth tends to captivate us with desire and enslave us with concerns and worries. Jesus saw many hearts squeeze out just a couple drops of their abundant security, a gesture that was neither painful nor difficult. The act of fulfilling, or thinking they were fulfilling a duty to God, caused them to glow with self-satisfaction. Some even were bloated with pride for having given so much, and yet their act was empty of real self-giving. They gave with routine indifference. Their giving lacked love. What does Jesus see in my daily or weekly gifts? Do I generously give God my all when I see him on the altar? Do I generously give him my all when I am on my knees in prayer? Do  I give him my all on my feet at work?

2. A Poor Widow: Only Jesus could have seen that this widow was now reduced to total dependence on family or friends. She gave more because she gave herself with a heart full of surrender. Is there anything we can give God that he has not already given us? We can give God our trustful surrender. The poor widow gave to God with trust since she knew that he would continue to care for her. She had no other real desire but to be with him and be enriched by him. Her giving was serene and resigned, not despairing, but rather full of hope. She had the hope of one who knows deep down how much God loves her. How much do I trust and depend on him, particularly when other securities begin to disappear?

3. Offering My Whole Life: Jesus shows the great importance of how we give—not only of what we give. What we have—our possessions and those, which in some way we have made our own—are not for us. We have them so that we might give them, and we should give them back to God, for they are his. We give them as an expression of our love for God. I give my life when I work diligently, practice charity, pray, or sacrifice for the love of Christ. All these acts of love, if not made explicit before, are made into an intentional gift to Jesus, when I mentally place them upon the paten along with the hosts to be consecrated during the Offertory at Mass. Do I give him my whole life?

Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, awaken me to all you are for me, and let me realize all that you have given me. May I never cease to thank you through my self-giving. You are my living and constant invitation to be more generous, to give more often, and with more love. Open my heart, Lord, to your work!

Resolution: In prayer, I will make a list of all that I can do for Jesus this week and offer this to him. Then, on Sunday during the Offertory, I will mentally place before him on the paten all the sacrifices I have made during the week—my real gift to him, given with faith and love.

 My REFLECTION MONDAY, 34TH Week in Ordinary Time

In the first reading from the book of Revelation, we see the Lamb in glory, surrounded by one hundred and forty-four thousand elected faithful. The Book of Revelation is filled with puzzling symbols. It was written during a time of suffering and persecution of the followers of Jesus and was intended to reassure the faithful of the final triumph of Christ. In the end, God wins! One hundred and forty-four thousand; multiples of 12, the number of the tribes of Israel; is a symbolic number meant to signify wholeness and completeness. God’s final plan is all-embracing and perfect. As we try to follow the way of Christ in our daily lives, we can take heart that we are among the faithful. 

 In the Gospel reading Jesus praises the great sacrifice and generosity of the poor widow who contributed 2 small coins to the Temple as he said to his disciples: "Truly, I tell you, this poor widow put in more than all of them. For all gave an offering from their plenty, but she, out of her poverty, gave all she had to live on." There are many people contributed to the Church and to charitable causes generously, their generosity is commendable. But today, what Jesus emphasized was how great the widow's donation was compared to what she owned: "She, out of her poverty, gave all she had to live on." God asks us to be willing to give our best, our all, to him and in service of him. In comparison, how generous are we to others, to those in need? Do we give from our plenty? We can help others not only with money and resources, but we also help others with our presence and time. The question is how much of ourselves do we give for others? Today, Jesus introduced a different way of evaluating gifts. It was not the value of the gift that was important but the sacrifice with which it was given. Jesus honored the sacrifice of the poor. God calls on each of us to faithfully give from a generous heart. Let’s ask our Lord Jesus help us to open our heart to him by giving generously and faithfully.