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Theo Tigno•
9/8/2010 9:56 pm
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Thursday, September 9th 2010 |
Luke 6: 27-38
Jesus said to his disciples: "To you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. To the person who strikes you on one cheek, offer the other one as well, and from the person who takes your cloak, do not withhold even your tunic. Give to everyone who asks of you, and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. For if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same. If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, and get back the same amount. But rather, love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back; then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as also your Father is merciful.
"Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Give and gifts will be given to you; a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing, will be poured into your lap. For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you."
Dawg's Thought:
Today's prayer intention - for wisdom.
A while back, there were those wristbands that had the abbreviation for "What Would Jesus Do."
Jesus did the things He asks of us today. He prayed for His persecutors. He offered His other cheek to be stricken. He did not withhold His tunic.
When we have a hard time with these, what an amazing thought that each of the hardships that we face can bring us to meditate upon the life of Christ! When we forgive others, it should remind us of Christ on the Cross, asking The Father to "forgive them, for they know not what they do." We can meditate on Christ's mercy to the woman caught in adultery, whom Christ did not judge.
Our suffering is an opportunity to meditate on the life of Christ. It is also our opportunity to unite ourselves to His suffering, through which we are redeemed.
My mistake in how I have embrace suffering is that I simply take it on myself, without meditating on Christ's suffering or offering it to Christ. It became a form of "pride" to hold my suffering to myself for the simple fact that I could. In other words, it cut me off from Christ's mercy and goodness. Pride is still pride, regardless if it is not forgiving someone, condemning someone, or withholding a gift given to you. I am the servant who buried his talent instead of investing it. My suffering could have been invested in Christ for the redemption of all fallen men.
WWJD? May we more deeply into what Jesus did so that we can truly, with great joy, live out what Jesus would do. Take care and God Bless.
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