By Newton Basumatari csc –
Readings: Jon 3: 1-10; Lk 11: 29-32
Our God is loving and merciful, whenever we turn to him, he forgives our sins. To experience his love and mercy in our day to day living, we need to cooperate with the will of God. We need to allow God to take control of us.
Instead of cooperating with God’s will or listening to his voice, we run away from him as listening to his voice would mean that we need to sacrifice certain things in our life like our personal likings and comfort. That is what we hear in the readings of the day. The Lord chose Prophet Jonah to proclaim his message, but he was not ready to accept God’s message in the beginning, because Jonah knew that by accepting God’s will, he had to sacrifice his desire. Therefore, he tried to run away from God.
There were times in my life too where I have not followed the will of God. I have refused to listen to his voice. I was like Prophet Jonah running away from God’s presence because I liked to be in my own comfort zone. But there were moments I felt like I was being challenged by God. He had spoken to me through various people, but I knew that if I listened to his voice, I would need to change my life. It is challenging to sacrifice our liking.
Through the gospel reading in the first week of Lent, Jesus is telling me that he has given me signs that prove how much he loves me. Therefore, he invites me to listen to his voice and cooperate with his will to transform my life as well as of others.