Remember the hymn, “Amazing Grace” that we sing at mass sometimes?
“Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me … I once was lost but now am found … was blind but now I see.”
This week has several Gospel readings about the parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son. These readings emphasize finding the lost, repentant sinners, and the love and forgiveness of our Lord God towards all of us, who come to Him through the sacraments of confession and holy Eucharist.
My elder brother was a straight A student at a Jesuit run boys school. He found a vocation for the priesthood during his high school years. Afterwards, he joined the Jesuits seminary and was preparing for the priesthood, for a period of 10 years. He was away from home and our family, working with the Lord to spread the Word, until one day, after much deliberation, he decided to discontinue his vocation. This was a decision that broke the hearts of my devout parents, who pray for vocations every single day.
For a long time after my brother’s return home, I noticed his indifference to the church and his less than positive opinions about the Catholic faith, which hurt my family and I so much.
After a lot of disagreements and discussions, I finally resorted to the best solution. PRAYER. It has been 6 years now and my brother is back in church and is a faithful, practicing Catholic again!
As we go through our lives, and responsibilities of family, jobs, and finances – emotional instability, grief and health issues crop up. Our coping mechanisms often fail, and then we sometimes resort to a mentality of being victims, and look to blame someone for our current situation and circumstances. Most often it ends up being the Lord, and our dissatisfaction with His ways of managing our life, which in fact are often the consequences of our own decisions. This vicious cycle of blame and unhappiness causes many of our own friends and family to lose the faith.
Let us pray today for all of our near and dear ones who have strayed from the faith, and fallen into the fad of atheism or sin.
Help them Lord, to see Your light and return to You with renewed hearts. Help them to encounter You, Lord Jesus, through our unceasing prayers and good deeds.
Amen
