Do you want to become a saint? Are you willing to pay the price of sainthood? - Daily Reflections September 14,2015

JESUS EMPTIED HIMSELF

 

This text on an ancient Christian hymn is extraordinary in how it shows the the reality of Christ’s nature and person. It seems that it should have been written after hundreds of years of reflection of the Christian Gospel, yet it occurs within the first generation after Jesus’ death. The Holy Spirit can do extraordinary things in our lives if we allow Him room to move.

       How do we empty our lives of self-interest? This is a critical aspect of the call to holiness. Without this, it is virtually impossible to surrender our lives to the will of God and be completely pleasing to Him. God loves us over and above what we do and achieve. However, the call to holiness asks us to take a journey with Jesus that will bring us to higher levels of knowing God, which will deepen our understanding of our faith and relationship with Him.

         Very few people attain the depth of knowledge of God necessary to produce a text such as the one we read today, simply because most people are not willing to surrender control of their lives to the Lord. Most of us are too scared to let go for fear of what God will ask of us. The joy of the saints is that they did not care what God asked of them, only that they would be allowed to stay in His presence and be as close as possible to Him. This is one of the secrets of the saints — letting go of their own agenda. We simply leave it all up to God and that ought to be sufficient for us.

       Letting go of our cherished dreams is never easy, but this is what discipleship demands of us. Letting go and handing control of our lives to God is the stuff that saints are made of.

         Do you want to be a saint? This may seem to be an easy question to answer, but if the answer is yes, the ramifications are very far-reaching indeed. _{Fr. Steve Tynan, MGL}

 

REFLECTION QUESTIONS: Do you want to become a saint? Are you willing to pay the price of sainthood?

 

Father, help me to believe that Your love is enough for me and that I need nothing else other than Your love. Help me to embrace whatever is Your call for my life.