Fr. Arthur Ntembula

Lord, I place this day into your hands. Protect my coming and going, guard my mind from negativity, and shield my heart from worry. Let your favor rest upon my work, my loved ones, and my home today. Amen.

Father, bless my interactions today with family, friends, and colleagues. Give me the patience to listen, the wisdom to speak kindly, and the empathy to understand others. May I be a source of encouragement to those around me. Amen.

God, let my words be true and my actions be upright today. May I strive for excellence in my work, treating everyone I encounter with respect, kindness, and fairness. Let my life reflect your light. Amen.

12th SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME - YEAR A
(Jeremiah 20:10-13, Romans 5:12-15, Matthew 10:26-33)
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A "FEAR NOT" FOR EVERY DAY

To be a servant of the Lord requires courage. It requires not only courage but also wisdom to know how to approach situations and, indeed, how to preach the message. As laborers in the vineyard of the Lord, we are called to defend the authentic faith and the truth, and to help society realize that whatever we build without Christ is built in vain. It crumbles. In this whole endeavor, the servant of the Lord places himself in the limelight for ridicule and threats. But Jesus says, “Do not be afraid.” As disciples of Christ, baptized and confirmed through the power of the Holy Spirit, we are all invited to stand firm on the battlefield. It is not our fight, but God’s. Thus, He will never leave us to fight it alone.

Jeremiah, in the first reading, had his own share of terror as a servant of the Lord. He faced hostility, not only from strangers but even from people he considered friends and family. He had to gather the courage to fulfill his purpose. He had to be strong and trust in God’s protective power. Therefore, he says, “The Lord is with me as a dread warrior; therefore, my persecutors will stumble, they will not overcome me. They will be greatly shamed, for they will not succeed.” This is a demonstration of profound faith in God and courage. Faith, therefore, is trust in God in the face of adversity and terror.

In the Gospel, Jesus says to his disciples, “Fear not…!” Fear is the greatest hindrance to authentic ministry. Because of fear, many people begin to compromise the truth; they begin to justify evil and forget who they are supposed to be. Jesus continues by telling his disciples to proclaim on the housetops what he taught them in secret. He gave them the right tools for their ministry, but they will not make use of them if they do not gather courage as Jeremiah did. The world is not very friendly to those who want to serve God with sincerity of heart. All of us have to brace ourselves for hostility, but courage should be our only driving force. Fear not! Even when everyone else decides to side with falsehood, we should not be afraid to stand on the other side, the side of what is right, for we never stand alone. As Jeremiah proclaims, the Lord is our warrior and our persecutors will be shamed.

Today, we have people who parade as Christians yet lack the courage to stand firm on the side of truth. When they should speak up to challenge evil, they remain quiet. What is our purpose as Christians if we simply fold our arms when we should be doing something to challenge evil? Does this make us any better than the actual perpetrators of the evil we should be challenging? What are we afraid of? Jesus says, “Have no fear of men…” Never fear anything that cannot destroy your soul. In the vineyard, we are to present ourselves as sacrificial lambs for others. We may lose our lives for it, but we gain so much more in heaven, for we die for something more precious than anything worldly. Just as death was destroyed by the death of Christ, we too should reclaim our position as Christians in our society, destroy any elements of falsehood and injustice, and promote what is right.

But before we set out on this path, the first enemy we have to fight is our own fear. The Bible records 365 “fear nots.” This tells us that every single day of our lives, God is telling us, “Fear not!”

ENJOY YOUR LITURGY
Fr. Arthur Ntembula

Lord, grant me the strength to face whatever today demands. When I feel weary, renew my energy. When obstacles arise, give me resilience. Help me to push forward with courage and a steadfast spirit. Amen.

Father, before the rush of the day begins, I center my heart in your presence. Fill me with a peace that surpasses understanding. No matter what challenges arise, help me remain calm, grounded, and steady in your grace. Amen.

ELEVENTH SUNDAY - YEAR A
(Exodus 19:2-6, Romans 5:6-11, Matthew 9:36-10:8)
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CHOSEN, NAMED, AND SENT

We are all chosen and called by name to be God’s instruments of grace to others. We are purposefully chosen, consciously named, and deliberately sent out to be agents of transformation in our world.

In today’s Gospel, Jesus looks at the crowds gathered around him. He is moved with compassion because they are harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. He is moved by the brokenness of the people. Because of this, he chooses twelve men, calling them each by name and giving them the authority to do works in his name. These men would be channels of blessing through which he reaches out to the helpless sheep. Indeed, the harvest is plentiful, yet the laborers are few. The people are hungering and thirsting for God, but those who are to be channels of God’s presence to them are still few. In the same way that the Israelites were chosen to be in a covenant with God so that as a nation they could become a channel of God’s grace to other nations, Jesus also chooses twelve apostles so that through them his power can reach out to the helpless sheep. We are the apostles of today whom he is choosing and sending.

God wants to serve humanity, and he is looking for tools to use in this mission. We, being the disciples he is choosing today, are tools suitable for the mission ahead. When you look at the environment in which many people live, it is as if they are sheep without a shepherd, dejected. Today, we are invited to be shepherds to one another, serving each other in kindness, reaching out to those who are struggling in our communities, and ultimately bringing the face of God to them. This is our primary mission.

For us to be able to do anything for others, we need to be moved by compassion. Often, compassion is a rare commodity. Within our neighborhoods, we have people who have been defeated by the hardships of life. Let us reach out to them and show them the compassionate face of God. We are all laborers with whom God is making a covenant. It is important that we bring ourselves forward, weak and limited as we are, and allow God to shape us into the kind of instruments he wants us to be so that we can go out and carry out our work effectively.

Israel was not a perfect nation, yet God chose her as his own. The twelve disciples were not chosen because they were perfect. It is God’s work to call whomever he wishes. He can even call the worst sinner to do the greatest works for others. The question is, “Are we responding to God’s invitation positively?” Are we available?

Fr. Arthur Ntembula
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