“Understanding that problems of life, when viewed with the Grace of God and by the Providence of the Lord, become great and wondrous moments of Blessings!

(Based on Amos 3:1-8; 4:11-12 and Mt 8:23-27 – Tuesday of the 13th Week in Ordinary Time, Year 2)

We live in a world of wonders…

For example…

Salt is a wonder.
• It is composed of two dangerous substances – Sodium which is explosive when exposed to moisture and Chlorine which is poisonous.

But salt is so very stable!

Alnico magnets are a wonder.
• It is composed of three non-magnetic substances: aluminium, nickel and cobalt.

But it is the strongest magnet in the world!

Water is a wonder.
• Its chemical formula is H2O – Oxygen is flammable and hydrogen readily burns.

But unite them, to get water and we put out fires with it!

But above all these things of nature and the natural phenomena, we have the greatest wonder in the Lord and Creator of every “object and situation” of wonder, Himself – God!

How often do we realize the wonder of His Being?

How often do we be thankful for the wonders He does in our lives?

The Gospel of the Day is a reminder and an eye-opener for us to realize the “wonderful” Person that we have in the “boat” of our lives – Jesus – and to be grateful for Him for His “wondrous” presence!

We are with the familiar passage of the calming of the storms.

The Gospel of Matthew reports the fact that when Jesus and His disciples got into the boat, there was sudden violent “storm”… (Mt 8:23)

The Greek word that is used for “storm” is “seismos”…

Seismos means a “shaking” or a “commotion” or a “tempest” or an “earthquake”
(It is from this word “seismos” that we get the word “seismic” which refers to earthquakes)

The disciples were right in the midst of something like a “sea-earthquake”

And it came on “suddenly!”

How often is our life too so similar…

We sail across calmly, enjoying the peace and serenity of life…
… when suddenly, we are hit by a deadly storm, in the form of…
… a major crisis in the family or the community
… an unexpected sickness to us or to our loved one
… some unimaginable disaster arising in our work-place
… an inexpressible pain or an absolutely unforeseen problem

We find ourselves totally despairing in the thick of that “seismos,” that “storm”.

The waves hit the boat of our lives so badly and violently…
… that for a moment, our heart skips a beat and we think, “is it all going to be over?”
… that for a split-second, we let go of every hope and we feel, “is it really the end?”

But the Lord who was always with us, in our boat, relaxed and calm, “gets up, rebukes the winds and the sea, and there is great calm” (Mt 8: 26)

It is as if the whole world is His classroom, and the Master Teacher gets up and demonstrates His power to His students!

It is as if the waves and the winds are getting “too naughty” and Jesus, the Lord, gets up and “rebukes and chides” them!

And suddenly the disciples realized something spectacular…

All this while, in the midst of the storm, they were shocked and appalled at the “wonder” of the mighty wind and the raging tempest.

But now… right before them and with them… was a Person who was the Source, Creator and the Perfection of all Wonders – “Jesus!”
• The “wonder” of the Lord’s presence far outmatched those of the deadly side of nature!
• The “wonder” of the Mighty Creator greatly surpassed that of the crisis they faced!

The Gospel says that the disciples were “‘amazed’ and said “What sort of a man is this, whom even the winds and the seas obey?” (Mt 8:27)

How often do we realize the wonder of His Being?

How often do we be thankful for the wonders He does in our lives?

Let us also, like the Disciples, learn to experience deeper and mingle with the “wonder” of the Lord – especially in the Most Holy Eucharist, where He is truly and really present…
… so that we can sail through the storms of our life, in faith and hope!

Problems of life, when faced individually, can be volatile and dangerous…

But when they are viewed with the Grace of God and by the Providence of the Lord…
… they become great and wondrous moments of blessings!

Today let us specially seek the intercession of St Irenaeus, the 2nd century Church Father and Apologist.

Let us give great heed to his words of warning, and thus seek to Love Christ and His Church more fervently and faithfully…
… “Error, indeed is never set forth in its naked deformity, lest, being thus exposed, it should at once be detected.
But it is craftily decked out in an attractive dress, so as, by its outward form, to make it appear to the inexperienced more true than truth itself!”

God Bless! Live Jesus!

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📖 Discovering the beauty of the Catholic Church through the Catechism
THE MYSTAGOGY OF THE CELEBRATION OF BAPTISM

In the liturgy of the Eastern Churches, the post-baptismal anointing is the sacrament of Chrismation (Confirmation).

In the Roman liturgy the post-baptismal anointing announces a second anointing with sacred chrism to be conferred later by the bishop Confirmation, which will as it were “confirm” and complete the baptismal anointing. (CCC # 1242)