Not that I say this because of need, for I have learned, in whatever situation I find myself, to be self-sufficient. 12 I know indeed how to live in humble circumstances; I know also how to live with abundance. In every circumstance and in all things I have learned the secret of being well fed and of going hungry, of living in abundance and of being in need. 13 I have the strength for everything through him who empowers me.
New American Bible. (2011). (Revised Edition., Php 4:11–13). Washington, DC: The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The Word of God has the power to edify us, build us up and console us. At times, we imagine the life of a person who follows Jesus as a happy life, in which all happens as he desires; however, we know that this is not the case. Life is equal for all, what is different is the posture of the person that believes. Christians, men of God, confront the same difficulties as everyone else; they make mistakes too, but God teaches them in the mistakes.
We ask ourselves what is the difference between the life of one who has faith and one who does not. The difference is that whoever has faith continues to see the situation differently, for from inside the faithful heart comes the strength to overcome difficulties.
When we encounter a Word like the one today, we ask ourselves if we know how to live this way, for when we are good we find that we do not need faith.
It is easy to be grateful to God when all is going well, but some persons do not know how to live in abundance, because they live in clutter and are deluded, they lose friends because they can do all.
Do we know how to live in destitution without revolting against God? We can ask the Lord the grace of living every situation be it good or not. “Give us Lord the grace to understand what this Word says to us today.”
The temptation is dastardly, because it draws close to us in the hour of destitution to make us think that God is not with us. But in the hour of suffering, the Lord makes us pass through periods of abstinence, and what was abundant in our life, we lack. Therefore, we always have to remind ourselves even in moments of abundance, we cannot accept that we do not need Him anymore, we cannot allow pride to detour us..
God teaches us to live and He puts Himself at our side in every moment. He teaches us to live in the correct way; it is up to us to learn to live in the exact condition that we have in that moment. We can confront whatever thing when God gives us the strength, but it is necessary that the determination comes from our heart in order that the miracle may happen.
If, in this morning, the strength of God encounter a divine heart all will be possible.
The Lord shows us and makes us to have clarity in what He wants of us when we question Him and open ourselves to hear Him. He fills us with the strength in order that the first step may be made..
If the human love comforts us, what does the Love of God not do for us? He is the Love that manifests itself in moment that we are most needy and in no moment does He allow us to unconsoled.
God does not take the bad situation from a person, but the person from the bad situation. The problem continues, but it does not affect us, it does not depress us, for our heart does not stop us as before, because God gives us consolation and gives us peace.
There are things that are worthless that we have, and to have them is may have been necessary to sell ourselves. However, we need to learn to live with what we have in every situation, always aware people can take what we have, but they can never take who we are.
. . . In Him we can do all. We put in our heart in sympathy with God and He will tell us what is bad and what is good.
In every moment that we can, we are going to raise our thoughts to God
Marcio Mendes, Canção Nova, on Sorrindo Pra Vida