Skip to main content
Do you have faith in God but never do any of His work? Do you serve as the hands and feet of God on earth? There are a number of great examples in the Bible of why merely declaring that Jesus Christ is your Lord and Savior is not enough. That is the first step but you must do the work as well. Look at the story of Noah in the Old Testament. God told Noah, "Make yourself an ark of gopherwood, put various compartments in it, and cover it inside and out with pitch. This is how you shall build it: the length of the ark shall be three hundred cubits, its width fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. Make an opening for daylight in the ark, and finish the ark a cubit above it. Put an entrance in the side of the ark, which you shall make with bottom, second and third decks." At that point Noah had a choice. He had declared his allegiance to God. He was, in fact, leading the life that God asked of all of the people in the Old Testament. Noah was a good person, a Godly man. He had tremendous faith. So when the Lord came to him and told him to build an arc, what did he do? He put his faith into action. He did the work that accompanied his faith. He built the ark for his family and the animals. He was faithful to the word of God and did the work as well. Mary, the mother of God, is another example of putting the work and the faith together. She was a teenager, living with her parents and betrothed to a wonderful man, Joseph. He was a carpenter and so very capable of providing a good living for Mary. She loved God and had faith. We know that she was a good Jew. When God came to her and asked her to be the earthen vessel for the Savior, she could have said many things. She could have told God that she loved Him very much but that she was only a teenager. She could have run from the situation. She said yes to God. She carried Jesus in her womb. She provided the human support so that God could come and dwell among us as man. She had faith and she did the work. It is what God calls us to do. As we enter the last part of the Lenten season, try to focus on doing the work of God on earth. Find your purpose and fulfill it. Be an example of God's grace and His goodness. Show others that you are truly an earthen vessel for God and allow Him to work through you. Faith without works is empty. Fill the vessel.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Woman, Behold Your Son

The spiritual climax of the Gospel of John, as Father John Waiss points out, occurs at the foot of the Cross, where Jesus utters his parting words: “Woman, behold, your son!” and “Behold your mother!” (John 19:26-27). While these words were addressed to the Apostle John, the disciple whom Jesus loved, the Church has long understood this moment as a universal adoption. To truly image Christ, we must share in His parentage; if we embrace God as our spiritual Father but reject Mary as our mother, we treat Christ as a half-brother rather than our "firstborn among many brethren" (Rom. 8:29). As Origen noted as early as the third century, the profound depths of the Gospel are only accessible to those who, like John, rest their heads on Jesus’ breast and receive Mary into their own homes. This maternal role is deeply rooted in biblical typology, positioning Mary as the fulfillment of the great mothers of the Old Covenant. She is the New Eve , the mother of all the living according ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Praying With The Five Wounds Of Jesus

I am just beginning to dive into the beautiful, ancient devotion to the Five Wounds of Jesus, and I wanted to share a bit of the journey with you. It can feel a little overwhelming at first to look at the Crucifix this closely, but I’ve found such a gentle guide in St. Bernard of Clairvaux . In his Jubilee Rhythm on the Passion, Bernard doesn't treat the wounds of Jesus as distant historical facts or sights to be avoided. Instead, he approaches them with the tenderness of a friend, speaking directly to the feet, hands, side, and face of our Lord. For someone like me who is just starting out, his rhythm teaches that prayer isn't just about reciting words; it’s a holy hide-and-seek. Bernard invites us to literally hide ourselves within these wounds, seeing them as clefts in the rock where we can find shelter when our own lives feel turbulent or heavy. As I start this process, I’ve been practicing what I call gazing and greeting. Following Bernard’s lead, I look at the Crucifix an...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Gentleness of a Doctor: St. Anthony’s Devotion

St. Anthony of Padua is widely revered as the "Hammer of Heretics" and a "Doctor of the Church," titles that suggest a formidable and perhaps distant intellectual. However, the heart of Anthony’s ministry was a profound, tender love for the person of Jesus Christ that transcended mere academic study. For Anthony, Christ was not just a theological concept to be defended, but a living presence to be embraced. This deep intimacy was the engine behind his legendary preaching; he didn't just speak about the Word, he spoke from a place of friendship with the Word. His life serves as a beautiful reminder that the greatest heights of wisdom are always reached through the simplest acts of love and humility. This interior devotion is most famously captured in the ubiquitous image of St. Anthony holding the Infant Jesus. This iconographic tradition stems from a mystical event late in his life while he was staying at the home of a friend, Count Tiso. The Count peered throug...
Post a Comment
Read more