Gospel: Luke 14:25-33
Great crowds accompanied him on his way and he turned and spoke to them. “If any man comes to me without hating his father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, yes and his own life too, he cannot be my disciple. Anyone who does not carry his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. And indeed, which of you here, intending to build a tower, would not first sit down and work out the cost to see if he had enough to complete it? Otherwise, if he laid down the foundation and then found himself unable to finish the work, the onlookers would all start making fun of him and saying, Here is a man who started to build and was unable to finish.’ Or again, what king marching to war against another king would not first sit down and consider whether with ten thousand men he could stand up to the other who advanced against him with twenty thousand? If not, then while the other king was still a long way off, he would send envoys to sue for peace. So in the same way, none of you can be my disciple unless he gives up all his possessions.”
Homily
I remember when my eldest brother left home in the mid-fifties to study in Canada. He had to give up the warmth of family and friends. He had to give up the trini lifestyle that he was accustomed to. He had to give up the position in the society to which he was accustomed, all for the sake of following his dream. In a very real sense he had to give up all his possessions, the things that were most dear to him.
As we look back on the recently concluded world championships we see the same process. Athletes have to give up family and friends and stick to their training. They have to take up the daily pain of training and of pushing themselves to the limit for the hope of the gold medal. When we are passionate about something we must be prepared to part company with those who do not share our dreams or are not in agreement with us. It happens when we decide to align ourselves with a particular political party, or some social cause. It happens when our dreams become so important to us that they begin to replace family and friends at the centre of our lives.
Being passionate about our dreams is not the only requisite for success however. We must also be levelheaded and plan. Great dreams do not become reality simply by our being passionate about them. We must strategize if our dreams are to become reality. The gospel reminds us; “And indeed, which of you here, intending to build a tower, would not first sit down and work out the cost to see if he had enough to complete it? If this is true in the secular world it is even more so in the world of the following of Christ.
We have to be passionate about the following of Jesus, as passionate as we are about winning our spouse, or about the PNM or the UNC or COP or the ILP, about football or cricket and just as in the secular realm our passion must be accompanied by level headed planning.
If you broadcast an SMO video that has great value, then you will find that your PE is psychological, then you need to viagra samples http://www.heritageihc.com/articles/21/ get instant results for an ideal penile erection. It is a vicious viagra online sample hormonal circle. Love fragrances is not drug, therefore, it has to be of an adequate size so that it can produce erection after penetrating. buy canada viagra Besides being a widespread disease, it also affects mental health of a person. purchase viagra no prescription We must know how to build our relationship with Christ; we must know what we must do to stay out of temptation. We must have a plan for helping others. We cannot be haphazard about it. When we are haphazard we get nowhere, and we lose enthusiasm. When a plan fails we can revise the plan and start over but passion without a plan soon dies.
That was the life of Jesus. He was passionate about the kingdom. He gave up everything for it. He had a plan. We read a few weeks ago that “he set his face resolutely to Jerusalem” And just as he lived for the kingdom, so he was willing to give his life for it.
So too must we be ready to give up all for the sake of the following of Christ. But that will only happen if we are passionate about it. A wise person once said “Life is only worth living, if there is something in life for which we are willing not only to live but also to die.”
Today the Gospel calls us to remember and thank God for the great persons of history and the saints of our time who were passionate enough about a cause to work for it and to give their lives for it. We remember and thank God for the Mandelas and Martin Luther Kings, the Ghandis and Romeros, .They lived with passion and died for the cause. We remember Mother Teresa of Calcutta and others who may not have had their blood spilt but who gave their last once of strength for the cause. We thank God for those who in spite of seeming failure continue to work with passion for our football and cricket and we remember parents and grandparents who gave up chances for their own comfort for our sakes. We thank God for them. They are indeed models for us. The Gospel however also calls us to look at our own lives. Is there something for which we live with passion and for which we will give up things as precious to us as the love of family and friends? Are we passionate about the following of Christ? May all of us, you and I be taken over by passion in our daily lives but especially in the following of Christ.
Prayer
All powerful and ever-loving God, your Son Jesus lived with a passion for the Kingdom. He not only lived for the Kingdom, he gave his life for it. Help us his followers to be passionate about the Kingdom also, so that signs of its coming may begin to appear, so that we may live the peace and harmony which will be its hallmarks when it is finally here. Let us be energized by the memory of the great individuals and saints of our time and help our energy to inspire others also so that we your followers may create a movement which brings peace and harmony to our country and our world. We ask this through the intercession of Mary our mother and Jesus, your Son and our brother. Amen
