The Fullness of Life
A call to reach new heights
Each day God is calling us to reach new heights. Life, like the road to Calvary, will always be an upward struggle. Day by day we are called to reach new heights of virtues, new heights of creativity, new heights of struggle against darkness and ignorance, new heights of commitment to the service and good of others, and above all, new heights of spiritual vitality in which we deepen our communication with God and with our neighbors.
Every time we are called to reach new heights, we also experience an inner renewal and transformation. We are re-created in the image of the Perfect Man, Jesus Christ. We become more like Him as we break through the many chains of selfishness, pride, greed, sloth, apathy, indifference, and lust of the flesh that pinned us down to the dirt.
God’s call for us to reach new heights is a daily invitation to listen and ponder on His Word: “If today you hear His voice harden not your hearts…” (Ps. 95:7-8), His Word which brought forth every creature into being out of nothing, and brought harmony, order and beauty out of chaos at the dawn of creation. The same Word is able even today to challenge us out of our apathy and indifference to work for betterment of our immediate contacts and the global community.
This call to reach new heights is also a call to face the new challenges of our day with renewed courage and creativity, not to give up nor to be discouraged; not to be paralyzed out of fear, and never be despaired of. Each generation has a burden to carry and a cross to win its resurrection. Let us meet the tasks of the day and labor diligently and conscientiously in our respective callings that we may reap the bountiful harvest of tomorrow.
St. John the Evangelist and Apostle gives us the account of how Jesus cured a man who had been invalid for thirty eight years (cf. Jn. 5:1-8). The man was beside the pool of Bethesda along with a crowd of disabled people waiting for the pool to stir up. When Jesus saw him in that condition, He approached and asked him, “Do you want to get well?”
“Sir”, the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.”
The Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” At once, the man was cured.
We, very often, are like the invalid man—unable to get out of our predicament. Sometimes, we have all the reasons why we cannot get up and move forward to reach new heights because we prefer the convenience of remaining invalid rather than brave the challenges of life and take up some productive toils. When we recall the life of Helen Keller or our own hero, Apolinario Mabini, and many others who did not allow misfortunes to stifle their creative spirit or to give up the struggle for better quality of life, we should be sensible enough to call upon our Lord and say, “Lord, heal me. I want to take up my mat and walk.”
May we conclude this with a prayer taken from The Liturgy of the Hours:
God our Father, work is your gift to us, a call to reach new heights by using our talents for the good of all. Guide us as we work and teach us to live in the spirit that has made us your sons and daughters, in the love that has made us brothers and sisters. Grant this through Christ our Lord.