GOOD FRIDAY
A TSUNAMI OF BLESSINGS
CARE FOR A TSUNAMI?
Do you want to experience a tsunami? I’m sure that is the farthest thing from your mind, the remotest ambition in your heart. If possible, we pray that we would be spared from a tsunami and its effects.
This is so because our knowledge of tsunamis is based on the experience of Sri Lanka a few years ago, and Japan, a few months ago this 2011. That tsunami was a tsunami of destruction, of loss, of death.
Today there is a tsunami in the Gospel. It is an occurrence the magnitude of which we cannot fully explain or understand. We stand before a man dying on the cross. A good man dies on the cross. A famous teacher and healer dies on the cross. The Son of God dies on the cross from the hands of evil men.
At first glance, we would think that this man has suffered the greatest misfortune of all. He preached only goodness and holiness and now he dies as victim of the very people he loved and who rejected his offer. What a tsunami.
But wait, before we judge further, let us pause awhile and examine if there is really a tsunami here and if it is also one of destruction and pain.
THE CROSS IS A TSUNAMI OF BLESSINGS!
The cross is a tsunami – but of love, of peace, of healing, of power!
We love the cross because the cross is our source of blessings. The death of Jesus on the cross is our hope and salvation. The cross is the source of every good. From the cross come peace, healing, reconciliation and love.
That is why we love the cross, we kiss the cross, we lift up the cross. We are not afraid or ashamed of the cross of Jesus.
The cross is a tsunami of blessings. Why? Because it seems like a catastrophe on the outside but actually it is a minefield of blessings in the inside. Is it really possible to see the cross and not think of it as a burden and pain?
Jesus shows us the way. Yes, the cross brought him suffering, but he also knew that the cross was a landmark to God’s love. That is why he embraced the cross with faith – not with complaints, doubts, anger or hopelessness. He believed that the cross was teeming with blessings if we accept it as God’s way of leading us to life.
Listen to the words of Jesus: Father, into your hands I commend my spirit. These are words of trust and indeed the Father took care of him and did not allow him to be imprisoned by death forever. We know the story. We know the cross is not the end of Jesus, but just a passageway.
Why is it that when we are visited by trials, we usually resent it immediately. We think that God has abandoned us and brought us to our end? And imbibing this attitude, don’t we normally find ourselves hopeless and helpless? That was not the way of Jesus on the cross – the cross, for him was positive act of love! That attitude brought him to the Resurrection.
JEROME AND JUSTIN
Let me tell you two stories:
A young high school boy I know, let’s call him Jerome, was full of family problems – product of a broken family, bullied in school, loner and without many friends. One day he was embarrassed by classmates and taunted by his teachers. In his shame he could not think of any other act but to end it all.
He went to the third floor of the school building and jumped from the window. He really wanted to die because when he landed alive from the fall, he uttered in disappointment, “im still alive?”
I met him in the hospital, crushed feet, broken legs and thigh. His right leg went up straight to his pelvis. Now he is out of school and needs constant psychological counseling.
He saw the cross and saw only a tsunami of pain and suffering. So he wanted to get out of it at once.
There is another boy I know, because he was my altar server in Holy Family Parish. I was also the godfather for his Confirmation. His name is Justin. Suddenly Justin developed big lumps on his neck and was confirmed to be stricken with lymphoma, a form of cancer, at the age of 12.
Justin had many plans. He wanted to become a priest. He was also an able athlete and computer addict. He loved his friends and family. He was very active and naughty. And then, all these?
And Justin also jumped… not from a tall building, but directly into the hands of Jesus. The more that he prayed, after learning of the cancer. He continued serving the parish as an altar boy. His family prayed too. His friends prayed for him. The problem of Justin’ health united the family in prayer. They knew this was only a challenge and God can work his miracles on Justin.
In the hospital, Justin was the life of the ward. Nurses loved him. His parents doted on him. I visited him and was totally inspired by the strength of his trust in the Lord.
This year, after one year of absence from school, Justin will enter high school. But not any ordinary high school. He passed the exams at the minor seminary of Manila. And he is already a cancer survivor.
For Jerome, the cross was a tsunami of destruction. For Justin, the cross was a tsunami of blessings.
OUR CROSSES IN LIFE
I’m sure you have crosses right now in your life. Does it bring you a tsunami of blessings too? If not, ask yourself if you have faith as strong as the faith of Jesus in the love of the Father, as strong as the faith of Justin in the power of Jesus.
Do you want a tsunami of blessings?
We again learn from Jesus. On the cross, he uttered another word full of hope. Jesus said: it is finished. What did it mean? Was it a sign of defeat or victory?
Surely, it was victory! ‘It is finished’ meant that Jesus knew His Father was in charge. On the cross, he could almost smell his triumph, his victory, his resurrection. He has done everything and he is now waiting for the fulfillment of his dreams for the entire world.
No matter how dark it seems…
No matter how long it takes…
No matter how your enemies seem to succeed…
Believe and God will help you! Do you believe that?
Today, like Jesus say: Father, into your hands, I commend my spirit.
And also say: It is finished. – claim the power of these words…
When you return home, pray over the things and people who are obstacles to your happiness and believe that “It is finished”. The problem will soon be overcome by faith in Jesus.
The bills… what will you pray over it? It is finished!
The pills… It is finished!
The rent… it is finished!
The tuition… it is finished!
The report card… it is finished!
The job application… it is finished!
Your husband! (you are finished!)
There is a tsunami in this church today. And blessing overflow from the cross. Believe in the power of this God who gives life to all who trust in him. Embrace the cross and kiss it full of trust.
Enjoy your tsunami of blessings today! Tomorrow there will be another surprise. Come and complete your blessings! God bless you all!