OXYGEN

10 Sep – Wednesday in the Twenty-Third Week in Ordinary Time

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1 Cor 7:25-31

About remaining celibate, I have no directions from the Lord but give my own opinion as one who, by the Lord’s mercy, has stayed faithful. Well then, I believe that in these present times of stress this is right: that it is good for a man to stay as he is. If you are tied to a wife, do not look for freedom; if you are free of a wife, then do not look for one. But if you marry, it is no sin, and it is not a sin for a young girl to get married. They will have their troubles, though, in their married life, and I should like to spare you that.

Brothers, this is what I mean: our time is growing short. Those who have wives should live as though they had none, and those who mourn should live as though they had nothing to mourn for; those who are enjoying life should live as though there were nothing to laugh about; those whose life is buying things should live as though they had nothing of their own; and those who have to deal with the world should not become engrossed in it. I say this because the world as we know it is passing away.

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Luke 6:20-26

Fixing his eyes on his disciples Jesus said:
‘How happy are you who are poor: yours is the kingdom of God.
Happy you who are hungry now: you shall be satisfied.
Happy you who weep now: you shall laugh.

‘Alas for you when the world speaks well of you! This was the way their ancestors treated the false prophets.

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… the world as we know it is passing away.

I read on moral theologian Father David Garcia’s blog an article he wrote about organ trade, particularly about the sale of one’s kidneys. In his article, there is one particular line that struck me. He wrote that “kidney patients are not dying because of a (moral) principle (that organs should not be traded). If not enough kidneys are available, kidney patients die because their kidneys fail, because our bodies sooner or later will fail, no matter how much medicine advances. What matters most is not how soon we die but how ethically we live.”

Today’s readings remind us of an important message – Earth is not our home. We are all pilgrims on a journey towards our eternal destination, and we should never forget that. Some of us act as though we are going to remain on Earth forever, and we do everything to make ourselves comfortable here. Why? After all, we are all going to leave this world behind sooner or later.

Indeed it does not matter how long (or how short) we live. There are saints who lived many years, and there are saints who died before they were thirty. Yet each of these saints lived with an urgency… an urgency to accomplish the mission that God set for them.

Let us take a few moments to reflect on the lives that we are living today and ask ourselves, “Is there a heavenly consequence for what I spent most of my time doing?” If not, we are just wasting the valuable time we have on something that has no lasting value. But if our answer is ‘yes’, then we know that we are not merely wasting our time on something temporary, but are working for something that is eternal.

(Today’s sharing by Daniel Tay)

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Prayer: Dear Lord, help us to keep our minds and our hearts set on Heaven, so that all that we do may have a lasting effect in building up Your kingdom, rather than our own.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks to the Lord for inviting us to be co-creators in His eternal kingdom.

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Upcoming readings:

Thu, 11 Sep – 1 Cor 8:1-7. 11-13, Luke 6:27-38
Friday, 12 Sep – 1 Cor 9:16-19. 22b-27, Luke 6:39-42; Holy Name of Mary
Saturday, 13 Sep – 1 Cor 10:14-22, Luke 6:43-49; St John Chrysostom, Bishop, doctor of the Church

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