Today’s Readings:
1 John 2:22-28
Psalm 98:1-4
Galatians 4:4-7
John 1:19-28
“Make Money Not Friends!”
Make no mistake about this—this is not the mantra for the New Year. It is just an inscription I read off someone’s T-shirt. And I wonder where the world is going with all her funny philosophies and sarcastic statements. All I can see is that there is a misplacement of values. Why do we make money? We do so for the following reasons: to take care of our needs, To take care of those who are dependent on us, To do charity and to work for our salvation by promoting the kingdom of God with the resources at our disposal.
Why do we make friends?
We make friends for the simple reason that we need people in our lives. We need people who share the same thoughts, tastes and values with us—people we can share ideas and grow with; people we can depend on in times of difficulty. People who can encourage us and help us to aspire towards greater things—aspire towards holiness and success in every aspect of our lives. Today, money has become more important than any other thing. We make money so that we can show other people that we are better than them. No wonder why we do not need friends because we don’t value people in the first place.
What happened to have friends? What happened to be a friend? What happened to being someone that others can lean on? What we have today are friends with benefits. We have hook-ups. We have “besties” (in the negative sense). We have gossip mates (we call it “gist”). We have people we feel miserable with. We try to impress others with our seeming status upgrade. How long are we going to continue in self-deception that will take us nowhere?
Saint Gregory Nazianzen described his friendship with Saint Basil in these words: “The same hope inspired us: the pursuit of learning…We seemed to be two bodies with a single spirit…Our single object and ambition was a virtue and a life of hope in the blessings that were to come... With this end in view, we ordered our lives and all our actions. We followed the guidance of God’s law and spurred each other on to virtue. We found in each other a standard and rule for discerning right from wrong.” Both men became bishops, doctors of the Church and saints in heaven.
My prayer this year is that you will make true friendship one of your goals. What does it entail? It entails loving others for themselves, and investing in the well-being of others since we are all part of the body of Christ. True friendship is to support others in their weakness and times of need. Most of us have friends who know nothing about us and we know little or nothing about them. Can you seek to support others just as you wish to be supported instead of simply bragging about the people you know? No matter how many friends you have or how influential they are, they cannot add any value to you unless you already see value in yourself.
JUDE-MARY OWOH
To surrender your life to Christ, say this prayer aloud: Father, thank you for Jesus Christ. Forgive my sins, take control of my heart and lead me in your righteous path by the power of Your Holy Spirit. Thank You, Lord. Congratulations! Prayerfully look for a living church and report to the resident pastor or priest.
Prayer:
Lord, thank you for my friends. Bless and protect them wherever they are. Help me to recognize your presence in the persons you place at different points in my life. Give me the discernment to choose my friends carefully and minister to you by supporting them. Amen.
Lord, bless my friends this year. May we all celebrate ACHIEVEMENTS and successes and give testimonies of Your goodness in our lives together in Jesus' name. Amen.
May God grant you the desires of your heart. May He cause all your plans to succeed. He will preserve you safe from all harm and never let anything separate you from Him. Amen.
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