Christ above and before all else
THAT’S what Christ meant when he said: “He that loveth father or mother more than me, is not worthy of me; and he that loveth son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not up his cross, and followeth me, is not worthy of
By Fr. Roy Cimagala
By Fr. Roy Cimagala
THAT’S what Christ meant when he said: “He that loveth father or mother more than me, is not worthy of me; and he that loveth son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of me. And he that taketh not up his cross, and followeth me, is not worthy of me. He that findeth his life, shall lose it. Ad he that shall lose his life for me, shall find it.” (Mt 10,37-39)
Scary words, to say the least! But if we study and meditate on them with our faith and piety, we know that we are actually given the best deal. That’s because by making Christ the first and our everything in our life, we would know how to properly love everyone else and to deal with whatever situation and condition we find ourselves in this life. He is “the way, the truth and the life” for us.
He is giving us the proper order of love. We cannot deny that if we are not guided by our faith, our loving can only replicate the love among animals. In spite of some signs of tenderness and care, it would simply be wild and raw, hardly going above the instinctive level that can be brutal.
We need to always look for Christ, to be with him and to follow him. That’s where we can find what is good for us in any situation we can find ourselves in. If that is not yet our greatest desire, then it’s about time that we train ourselves to acquire such desire.
What is that? The simple answer is because Christ already conquered what is not good for us. More than that, he has made all the negative elements in our life as a way to our salvation and eternal joy. He gives us the strength that we need, as expressed once in the Book of Isaiah who said: “They that hope in the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall take wings as eagles; they shall run and not wear; they shall walk and not faint.” (40,31)
Even in our difficulties and suffering, such condition of lightness, peace, etc., should be felt. After all, it would be Christ who would be bearing them more than us. We simply share a little of the weight. And when we share it with him, we would know that such difficulties and suffering have some positive value.
We should be wary when we are complacent in this duty of looking for Christ in everything that we do. We have to look for him, so we can find him and be with him, and share what he has with us.
We have to be wary when we would just allow ourselves to be dominated or ruled by our earthly condition—our moods, bodily health, the temper of the times, etc. We should be guided always by our faith which, by the way, is a gift God gives us always in abundance. The gift of faith is no problem. It’s never in short supply.
Right at the start of the day, let’s take the decision to be ruled by our faith, and not simply by our earthly condition, and to start looking for Christ. With him, we are assured of a happy life despite whatever. Our outlook in life would always be marked by optimism and confidence. Yes, Christian life is always a happy life!
Email: roycimagala@gmail.com
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