Keep your eyes on Jesus

Good News ReflectionThursday of the 30th Week in Ordinary TimeOctober 29, 2009
Halloween's almost here. What's the right perspective about it? See my Good News WordByte on it:http://wordbytes.org/occult/halloween.htm
Today's Readings:Rom 8:31b-39Ps 109:21-22, 26-27,30-31Luke 13:31-35http://www.usccb.org/nab/102909.shtmlUSCCB Podcast of the Readings:http://ccc.usccb.org/cccradio/NABPodcasts/09_10_29.mp3
Keep your eyes on Jesus
Do you feel overwhelmed? Is a problem causing you anguish, or distress, or persecution, or a famine of unmet needs, or a feeling of being too vulnerable, or putting you in danger?
In today's first reading, Saint Paul assures us that, in reality, it's not the problems that are overwhelming. It's our victory over the problems: "We conquer overwhelmingly through him who loved us."
While in the midst of trials, it's difficult to feel the closeness of God and see his plan of action and understand why he's allowing us to suffer. We miss seeing this truth because we're focused on who's causing the problem and what's happening in the visible world.
We need to put our focus back on Jesus! Since he loved us so much that he sacrificed his life for us, we have proof that his love is so strong it will always embrace us. Jesus will always take good care of us, doing what's best for us as well as for all those who are involved in the same situation (he loves your trouble-makers as much as he loves you).
When it seems like God has abandoned us or neglected our needs or ignored our prayer requests, that's when we most need to put our eyes back on Jesus and take a good look at who God really is and what his personality is really like. God is love, and it's impossible for love to stop loving.
Whatever is causing us to feel anguish or distress, whatever we're worried about, because of our relationship with God it's never as bad as it seems. Evil can never succeed. No troubles can come between us and the Lord. God's love won't fail to intervene and protect us and guide us to the best solutions. Even while it seems to take "too long", he is helping us.
We certainly can fail to receive his help, we can make bad decisions that lead us into more trouble, and we can let others control our moods if we depend on them for our joy, but God's love never stops ministering to us, never stops providing us with everything we need, never stops being a cause for joy.
The only thing that's impossible for love to do is to stop loving us. The only way for evil to defeat this love is for us to believe – whole-heartedly – that such undying love isn't really what we want. And that's how people end up in hell.
Evil creates a false illusion that it's going to win against God's power. Evil has momentary victories when we take our eyes off of Jesus and let the sources of our troubles control our faith. Yet, even before we reclaim our faith by choosing to trust God, God's love is covering us, surrounding us, seeking a way into our hearts so it can fill us, always making itself available.
God's love overwhelms all strategies of evil and all potentials for disaster. Our trust in this love overwhelms our negative emotions and produces lasting joy. Choose to trust!
© 2009 by Terry A. ModicaFor PERMISSION to copy any of my reflections, go to:http://gogoodnews.net/DailyReflections/copyrights-DR.htm
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