Following Christ

Friends,

Peace be with you in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ!

Following Jesus to many seem difficult. For me, it's what I really want to do, and so the passion for serving Christ in others makes it so much easier when you are faced with difficult times.

The beauty of this Messiah is that he prepares us for every stage of life most appropriately. He never sends us out without full armour. The thing about God is he has been calling us like a patient, sometimes weary parent and like every typical child we refuse to answer because we are tired, bored, upset, lazy, angry, stubborn - you know!

But this Jesus person keeps calling and calling. I sometimes wonder if his throat ever gets sore! LOL! I love Jesus because he is so patient and forgiving. He's compassionate and trustworthy. When I decided to answer this 'supernatural' call as some refer to the vocation to religious life, I came into an authentic appreciation for the 'plan' God has for my life. My mother would often say to me: "come boy, ah callin yuh..." Like typical Stephen I must have a reason for going, don't waste my time. So I would respond: "wat yuh callin meh for? wat yuh have fuh meh!?" Mum replies: "COME AND SEE!". How profound I guess, because this is exactly what happens between us and the Father. He calls us, but because we are not in control of what is going to happen next, fear is released into the air and we get tense, skeptical, we worry and start over analyzing. The truth is that mummy was calling me to give me a cool T'shirt she saw on her way home and thought I might like it, so she loves her son so much she decided to get me this little gift to cheer me up and to say that she loves me. But disobedience and fear can often times make us miss out on a blessing that God has for us.

My friends today I share these thoughts with you from deep in my heart. You don't have to stop everything that you are doing to follow Christ. We are called to serve Jesus in everything we do, everywhere we step foot. It's all about our 'Way of Life'. The way we speak to others, the way we treat others, the many times we are selfish and uncaring, unloving, unforgiving. Sometimes in our woundedness which nobody knows about we are longing for some of these love languages to be administered to us - a word of emulation, saying "I love you, you are special", a home-made post card, a glass of water if someone is thirsty, a listening ear if all you could afford - you know?

Following Christ is only hard and tedious if we are forced to do it. Today I encourage you to 'tap in' to your inner beauties and drives. Always ask yourself: WWJD - What Would Jesus Do?
Ever heard the saying: "what so ever you do to the least of my brother, that you do unto me."

God, my friends, is right here. If you want to see him, look in a mirror, look at the person next to you, the vagrant, the queen, the rock-start, because we are all made in His own image and likeness. All of us, no matter colour, creed or race has Jesus Christ in us. Everytime we curse and run the prostitute, the drug addict, the vagrant, the sick and suffering man with sores, we chase Jesus away.

It is with this deep desire to serve Christ in others as St. Dominic did, I urge all of us today, none excluded - to 'follow Christ and serve the world as He did, when he walked upon the earth, love each friend and enemy as he did, through God's eyes we have equal worth.'

Remain in peace with the blessings of God, through the intercessions of our Father Dominic, Mary our Mother, to Jesus Christ our Lord who lives and reigns world without end, Amen.

Peace.

Bro. Stephen