THE WORD
Is 6,1-8 / Mt 10,24-33
[Jesus said to the Twelve,] “No disciple is above his teacher, no slave above his master. It is enough for the disciple that he become like his teacher, for the slave that he become like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more those of his household! Therefore do not be afraid of them. Nothing is concealed that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be known. What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light; what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops.
“And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna. Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father’s knowledge. Even all the hairs of your head are counted. So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. Everyone who acknowledges me before others I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father. But whoever deniesme before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father.”
IN OTHER WORDS
We are precious in the Lord’s eyes. He said: “Do not be afraid. The Father is taking care of you.” We are also very important. He said: “Do not be afraid. You are worth much more than many sparrows.”
These words are pertinent to my experience as a 58-year old believer and a 27-year old ordained priest. In helpless situations where my faith was tested, I only repeated: “God will provide.”
The first time I experienced God’s providence was when I was preparing to enter the seminary.
All set to go, I discovered my father was hospitalized and eventually died. I spent my savings to help defray his hospital bills. I was helpless, but I still wanted to enter the seminary. An MIC sister who told me: “Don’t worry. God will provide.” came to my rescue. Hurdling the hassle of searching for a place, I was accepted in Christ the King Seminary. The rest is history.
Every time I was in dire need God always provided for me. Our house was destroyed - the SVD assisted me financially to build a new one. My brother was killed while I was on retreat in preparation for perpetual profession - I was dispensed from the retreat and allowed to go home for the burial.
The parishes I was assigned to were poor but when preparing for important celebrations, money was never a problem. One thing I was sure though: I remained poor. I realized that God gave me the things I needed, no more, no less.
The Father indeed takes good care of his people. He wants to save everybody. He even sent his on to rescue us from the slavery of sin. He will surely take care of us as he said: “Not one sparrow falls to the ground without your Father’s consent.”
- Fr. Rodrigo Salac, SVD | HNU, Tagbilaran City, Bohol
The Word in other words 2016
An annual project of Logos Publications, The WORD in Other Words Bible Diary contains daily scripture readings and reflections written by priest, brothers, and sisters of the three congregations founded by St. Arnold Janssen (the SVD, SSpS, and SSpSAP). It hopes to serve as a daily companion to readers who continually seek the correlation of the Word of God and human experience.
