Matthew 25:40
“Amen, I say to
you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.”
They would knock on the
car windows, begging for alms.
Sometimes, I would give them something but most of the time, I would not. What is worse, I would even comment that
these children are part of a syndicate, so giving them money would mean
“feeding” the syndicate.
I would see them sitting or lying on the
streets, begging for alms. Sometimes, I
would give them something but most of the time, I would not. What is worse, I would even comment - they
seem to look to be in such good health:
they are just so lazy! They could
work. They are young and even look
stronger than me.
God would see me kneeling, praying for
something that I need, or even begging for something that I want. Sometime, He would give it to me immediately
but most of the time, He would not.
And then I would comment, He does not love
me, He does not care.
It is really our nature to want to receive
more than to give. When it comes to
giving to others, we are sometimes very stingy.
But when it comes to asking for something, we even “want the whole
world”.
One must take from oneself and give to
others. And we don’t just give
alms. We must do so cheerfully and not
reluctantly, secretly and not for the praise of men. And you may not care anymore how he use it –
as what St. John Vianney had said – “The poor will be judged on the use they
have made of their alms, and you will be judged on the very alms that you could
have given but haven't.”
Let us pray +
Almighty
Father, teach me to be
generous; teach me to serve you as you deserve, to give and not to count the
cost. Amen +
Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life.
No comments:
Post a Comment