Matthew 13:57
“A
prophet is not without honor except in his native place and in his own house.”
Isn’t it frustrating? One has to leave his country to work in a
foreign land. There, he would spend his
time and use his talent and skill to help other people, build buildings,
develop something useful and be productive – all for the sake of a country that
is not his. And back home, he would be
considered as “modern-day hero” – not because of the things he has done, but
because of the dollars he is sending home.
Have you experienced that or is
experiencing it? Yes, I know the
feeling. Been there, done that… and is
doing it again. Getting the raw end of
the deal… been frustrated before, but not anymore. As the tagalog saying goes, “ang mainis,
talo” (in frustration, the loser is you).
So, I would just do it… and do it well.
“Ikaw na ang mainis, di ako…” (you lose, not me).
Jesus came home to Nazareth and displayed
great power in healing and preaching.
But in His ways and outward appearance, He remained the same humble son
of the carpenter Joseph. Being the Son
of God, He needed no praise or adulation, but He certainly did not deserve His
villagers’ depreciating and offensive remarks.
Jesus teaches us to be humble in the face
of such criticisms or prejudice. Even when He was rejected by His own hometown,
He did not use His powers to “show them” as some of us would have done to prove
ourselves. He teaches us not to seek honor for ourselves, because the only
honor we should strive for is what we hope to receive from the Father when we
have found true humility.
So, as they become more frustrated, in the
end, they become more of the losers in the eyes of God. Are you a loser?
Let us pray +
Almighty Father, let me not seek the honor
and praise of men; but just grant me the grace to act according to Your Will,
and be pleasing to You in everything that I do.
Amen +
Sing with joy to God our help.
No comments:
Post a Comment