Of monsters and children

July 13, Wednesday, 15th Week in Ordinary Time
Daily readings: Isaiah 10:5-7, 13B-16 PS 94:5-6, 7-8, 9-10, 14-15 Gospel: Mathew 11:25-27

We forget about God or feel we do not need him in our lives.

When we become involved in an argument or a conflict, we lose sight of the consequences of our actions. Most of the time, we are so focused on winning or making a point that we forget the welfare of those around us.

When arrogance takes over, we become deaf to reason. We become blind to the needs of others because we have become selfish. And when we are selfish, we tend to think of ourselves only and ignore those around us, even those who love us. We, the children of God, have created ourselves to become monsters.

In Isaiah, we see God's wrath directed at Assyria because they are too proud and full of themselves.

When we become so obsessed with being a know-it-all, our decisions and actions usually go against God's will.

We always have a funny way of doing things: we pray and pray for our lives to get better, and yet we are too lazy to do something about it, or we stubbornly believe that we can succeed in life without the help of God. When things don't go our way, we dare to question God about it.

In the Gospel, Jesus says that his teachings will only be understood by those who are childlike: humble and trusting with an open heart.

A few people I know have left the church, claiming to have discovered the "answers" to their doubts about faith in another sect or religion. I now wonder if they were stubborn because they only wanted to hear what they wanted. Did they listen to the teachings of the Church with a childlike heart? Or maybe because of our arrogance, we have become monsters, which gives us reason to leave.

Let us pray that we do not become monsters. Let us constantly be reminded that we are children of reason, humility, and grace.