Give without expecting anything in return

July 25, Tuesday, Feast of St. James, Apostle
Daily Readings: First reading: I Corinthians 4:7–15; Gospel Matthew: 20:20–28

During my teaching days, it has become customary to see two categories of teachers at the "Christmas party": the advisers and the floating. When you state advisers, you are referring to teachers who have advisory classes throughout the entire school year, whereas floating teachers do not.

Typically, advisor teachers receive more gifts than floating teachers. When the school year is coming to an end, the floating instructors tease the advisers, who have many papers to grade while they only need to compute and submit the grade.

This is how I connect my experience to today’s gospel narrative. I have felt that my service to my students must be reciprocated. I believe it is not surprising that, as humans, the majority of us expect a return or reward for our hard labor in our profession or service.

However, Jesus invites us to go beyond expecting a return or recompense. Our Lord desires for us to be selfless in our love and devotion.

If we believe that Jesus Christ has called us to various vocations, we are called to give our entire selves without expecting anything in return.

It is also beneficial to periodically question ourselves, particularly in our ministry if it is founded on love, why we are focusing too much on what we will receive after.