24TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME B
SELF-CHECK and FAITH-CHECK
MK 8: 27-35
MESSAGE
When you are young you ask the question: What is my mission in life? When things are not doing well in life, you ask: What is the “why” in all of these? When you grow old, your question becomes: Do I still have a purpose here on earth?
It is good to ask ourselves these questions; there is no harm in “self-check.” It is always healthy to know the reason why we exist, why we are alive. In the arena of faith, however, it is even more important to ask questions, self-examining questions, but with a difference. It is no longer about me, not about us. It is about the Lord. Jesus reminds us to pause awhile and do a “faith-check,” to answer the question: “Who do you say I am? Who am I to you at this point in your life? What place do you have for me in your heart?”
We ask these questions not because we are mere creatures before our mighty Creator; not because we are mere servants face-to-face with our Master; not because we are children dependent on our heavenly Parent. We ask because the answer we give to God also clarifies the questions we ask ourselves. We cannot fully know ourselves unless we know God first – not as creator, or master, or parent, but as lover and friend.
It was only when the apostles answered in their hearts Jesus’ question, his “faith-check,” that they realized their real purpose and mission in life, their “self-check.” It was to be followers, faithful followers who will forget themselves, take up their cross, and pursue the path of the Lord.
REFLECT
This week, take time to allot some moments for silent prayer. At this point, who is Jesus to you? Where is God precisely in your life? How is your relationship with him?
