It has been quite a week. The recent hail storm that hit Perth caused much damage to cars and property, and our car was not spared. However, we are thankful that we are both safe and our place is still around with electricity available.
The news reported that 7000 homes and businesses were affected by the storm and did not have access to electricity. Western Power was working overtime to address the problems and until today, some homes are still without electricity.
It has taken quite awhile for this to sink in. Just before the weekend, we received a wonderful piece of news. If you were not aware, we were both facing the prospect of finding for alternative accomodation in June. This has been quite a big deal for us as it would mean having to go look for a place to rent and shifting house once again, when we have just started to get used to this new place.
Well, the wonderful news was that we were told by Auntie Ann that her niece would not be coming to stay with her and would not need to occupy the place that we are currently staying at. We were thus able to get an extension till at least the end of August. This would give us some time to look for a place of our own and hopefully, if all goes well, we should be able to qualify to purchase a house then.
I must say that this has been very sudden for us and a huge relief off our chest. We were really hoping and praying that God will work His magic once again and help us in our time of need. He has indeed granted us a lifeline and blessed us with this miracle. God provides and in this instance He has been very prompt and quick in His help and blessing.
Looking back I wondered if it was really necessary to worry about this issue. Though deep down in my heart I know that God will ensure we can be able to continue to stay here or He will provide us with a place if this does not work out. It was the anticipation that was really killing me inside...
I must say that it has been faith that constantly needs nurturing such that we can place our total trust in God that He will make all things right for the good of us.
Help me trust in you Lord and never fail to hold tight to your promise for us. Continue to lead us in our journey of faith. Thank you for your providence.
I had to drag myself out of bed this morning. I felt so drained and tired from all the worrying and fretting I put my brain through almost every other day. Though I constantly tell myself that I should lift them all up to the Lord, my weak flesh somehow continues to undertake them in their entirety.
At mass, I suddenly recalled the Lenten session we had last evening with Father Trevor at St Luke's church. One of the sharing questions was what we would like God to lead us into as part of our future. I did not know the answer to that. I could not see beyond the present and the future seemed uncertain and full of darkness.
As I was sitting there in church, I felt this sudden surge of images flooding my head, of all the bad things that would happen in the future. It's as if anything that can go bad will go that way, Murphy's Law at work.
In the midst of the Eucharistic celebration, I tried to find space for God's prompting but struggled at it. The images just would not make space. Finally, I managed to put to rest all these bad imagery by replacing them with beautiful memories of my wedding day. It brought me back to the new beginning Angie and I embarked on more than 3 years ago and gave me great hope of what is ahead, assured that God has amazing plans for the both of us, and He will not abandon us and leave us on our own. At last, I felt peace and calm within me.
Thank you God for who you are. I know that you call us to live in the present everyday and hope in the future, knowing that you will provide for all that we need. Be with us Lord and lead us to where you wnat us to be. May your Will be done in our lives. Amen.
It was a long night yesterday. Bad news followed one after the other. I could not imagine how things would get better and in my frustration I said something hurtful to Angie. We did not speak much until this morning after I apologised. I guess we both had our way of dealing with the news and it did not help in assuring one another.
We had a chat with the mortgage broker last evening and we were told that we would not be able to get a loan from any bank or lender until we have completed 6 months at our jobs. It meant that we would only be able to get our own home after August this year. In addition, since my scholarship is till the end of this year, I need to get an endorsement from my Professor at UWA that I will be offered the scholarship for the 3 years PhD program, to provide proof to the banks that I will be getting some form of income at least for the next 3 years. As such we would have to continue boarding here at Leeming till at least September or October, maybe even November or December.
We were at our friend's place yesterday. Toni and Michelle invited us over to join in the celebration of Josh's 2nd birthday. We had planned to be there early at around 630pm but God had other plans.
I left church this morning after mass with much food for thought. The Gospel for the day was Matthew 5: 17-19 which spoke of Jesus' teaching about the law. Father mentioned that in those days, the Jews' idea of the law was structured around 4 things.
The first is the ten commandments, the second is the first 5 books of the old testaments, the third is a combination of the first 5 books of the old testaments and the traditions (if I recalled correctly), and lastly it's the oral and scribed laws. It is the oral and scribed laws that were created by the jews over time and it became more of a binding contract for the jews, of which they had to follow strictly. It is this law that Jesus was against and as written in the Gospel, He came to fulfil the law, which consist of the first three things mentioned above.
This was new knowledge to me. Father then continued about how we are called to impart our values, which must be centered on Christ and the law of the church, to our children and our children's children. The reason, which is of great importance, is that our children are the future of our society. These words just hit me really hard. I am thinking to myself how immensely true this statement is. Although we have yet to become parents, but I just never thought about how paramount the task is to bring up kids.
I now see parents in a whole new light and my parents especially. I pray to God that He will prepare me and Angie for this immense task in the future for us and thank God for the beautiful gift of our parents and all parents around the world. May God be our guiding Light in this world clouded with darkness.
This morning, I went to St John and Paul Church for mass. I arrived with a heavy heart, feeling again directionless and afraid of an uncertain future ahead. I could not focus on praying as I sat there reciting the rosary.
Mass started and Father started by quoting Azariah in the first reading of the book of Daniel 3: 34-43. He said that Azariah was confident in the trust he had in God that God will be merciful to those who trust in Him. At that point, I wandered if I have placed my total trust in God. Should I not be certain in my heart that God will be merciful to me... As all the worries and troubles consume me every other day, I strive to surrender them all in total trust to God and receive His mercies and blessings in the process.
Father surprised me by giving a short homily after the Gospel reading. He shared about the topic of forgiveness and how we are called to imitate Christ. The very first prayer that Christ prayed while on the cross was a prayer for his enemies asking God to "Forgive them for they know not what they are doing". I felt this was very appropriate during this period of Lent but even more so for me. I always seem to hold on to hurts that my so called "enemies" inflicked onto me. These enemies of mine include persons, group of people, particular systems etc. I find it very hard to let go, let alone pray for them and yes, forgive them.
Another point that Father brought up was that holding on to unforgiveness has the physchological effect of causing depression in us. This really harms us instead of others who have caused us hurt. I totally agree with this point and as I look at my life, I find so many occasions where I have allowed the grudges I hold to affect my moods. These in turn affect my relationships with my love ones.
It is really difficult to forgive our enemies but God is calling us to forgive our enemies. We are called to imitate Christ and we will reap the joy and peace that forgiveness brings. I have decided to make this conscious effort to forgive anyone for steps on my toes and I pray that God will grant me the strength I need.
Dear Lord, I want to forgive those who have killed my spirits but I know that I cannot do this without your help. So help me Lord to acknowledge my enemies and to forgive them. Amen.
It was another fruitful evening at the Lenten session with Father Trevor yesterday. I am truely edified by all the stories that were shared. Though I failed to share anything at the past 2 sessions, I felt compelled to share this little nugget of information which I am about to write here. However, as I figure out how to put together a sentence or two, the opportunity to share passed me by.
Anyway, this relates to the Gospel of Luke 13: 1-9 and a similar situation that a few of the people experienced. The Gospel relates the story of the owner of the vineyard wanting to cut down the fig tree that was not bearing fruit. The worker however convinced him to postpone that decision till the next year if the tree still fails to bear fruit.
We were posted a question of how we react when family, friends or members of the community do not see or want to do things our way. Many shared about their kids not going to church and how they worry for them. Father enlightened us when he said that we really worry about ourselves because we fail to influence our kids to be like us.
As I was sitting there, I felt for them, who try their level best to bring their kids up in the catholic teachings only to see them fall by the wayside. I was processing all these stories of worries coupled with some tips that were shared when I remembered the story of St Monica. Her son Augustine left the church, became a womaniser and what have you. She prayed daily for his conversion and I think after many years and tears being shed, Augustine finally converted and even became a saint. God truely has His own time. I so wanted to share this story to encourage the parents but the opportunity slipped by...
I think that God has the master plan for us and we really need to trust in Him, something I struggle with on a daily basis. It is so tough when things just seem to go south and we have no control over them...
Dear Lord, help me put my trust in you always and be patient with you as you unveil your marvelous plan for us, each and every unique one of us. Thank you God for your patience with us.
Today, I went for morning mass at St John Paul Church in the suburb of Willetton just across the main street from where we are staying. Don't know what came over me but I was feeling alittle lost in the direction that my life was taking. In church during mass, I kept asking God what is it that he is asking of me...
Our previous Lenten session with Father Trevor came to mind. The Gospel of Luke 9: 28-36 which spoke of the transfiguration of Christ is a beautiful reminder for us to be like Christ. This is our calling and we should never lose sight of it. God is always calling us to be like Christ.
The second reading of last Sunday's celebration also came to mind. St Paul's letter to the Philippians 3: 17 - 4:1 spoke of Paul's time in prison and his words of encouragement to the Phillippians. His letter really gives us strength to perserve and remain faithful to Christ. I thought of our late pope John Paul II, how he struggled through his illness but constantly seeked to glorify God in all his endeavours.
I am encouraged and pray that I would be able to keep my eyes on God and remain faithful, to constantly remind myself to imitate Christ in all the I do.
Today, we are at our new place down south in the surburb of Lemming. A new day and a new hope for our stay here in Australia. I was just thinking to myself what to look forward to and I felt terrible and uneasy, not knowing what the future holds. It was as though it is a hopeless scenerio.
Thank God it did not stay that way. As I was reading the reflections of today in my little Living Faith book, scripture spoke to me. The Gospel reading of Luke 6: 38 told of gifts being showered upon us if we first give. The writer said that all that we have is a gift from God and it is through the opportunities that we were given that allowed us to achieve what we have. Therefore we should give as we have been given.
Immediately, I recalled the Lenten session we had with Father Trevor at St Luke's Church last Wednesday when a lady in the group shared about Christian hope, that God gives us a definitive hope. It is this hope of eternal life with Christ that allows us to hope in a future we have not set our eyes on. I remembered thinking to myself that really what we have comes from God and if we can view it in this way, our attachments to things of this world would not be as strong. We can then share what we have because technically, we were given these.
I think more importantly, by giving and sharing what we own, we will receive much more in terms of intangibles like lessons in love, the hope of a better world and a closer walk with God. It is through these experiences that enable us to see beyond our lives here on earth and we can truely live out eternal life with Christ.
God gives us a definite hope, a future filled with that promise of hope. Amen!
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