HOMILY, MONDAY OF THE 26TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME, YEAR A
Job 1:6-22, Luke 9:46-50
FACTS FOR REFLECTION
- Our strength to stand in the times of trials is built on our faith in the omnipotency of God.
- Behind everything visible, there is an invisible.
- Behind every physical occurrence, there is a spiritual.
- The mind has a lot of influence on the body.
There was something behind the scene before the calamity that befell Job. There was a discussion that took place in the spiritual realm between God and Satan. Satan had to play his accusing role, trying to play down Job’s faithfulness. God took pride in him, but Satan did not have a good word for him, because he is an accuser.
Moreover, thinking in human terms, the death of Job’s children, and the destruction of his servants and his sheep could be attributed to natural causes; the Sabeans, fire, the Chaldeans, and the wind. There was only one entity behind these, the evil one. It takes wisdom to ascertain the cause of our problems. When we know the cause, we will able to know the appropriate response or solution.
However, it is to our relief to know and believe that God can never destroy the work of his hands, though at atimes he allows some calamities in their lives which stand as their test of faith and means of strengthening them. If God is for us, no one can be against us.
Job exclaimed, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return; the Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” Job 1:21. What we say in times of trials matters. We must be careful with the kind of words we utter when things are not going on well with us. If Satan fights us and we cry, automatically he has won. Our resilience and ability to retain our minds is a weapon against his bullets. He can only accuse. It is God who restores.
In whatever circumstances we find ourselves, God remains our focus. If we allow our situation to lead us to sin, either is words or deeds, it means we have failed our test of life. In all Job trials, he did not sin or charge God with wrong. Job 1:22.
May the good Lord stand by us in all our trials. May no agent of Satan succeed in our lives. Amen.
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