Homily: January 28, 2025, Tuesday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time (Do your will)

-

 “Then I said, As is written of me in the scroll, Behold, I come to do your will, O God.”

When I was little and growing up on the farm, I didn’t know much about the world beyond my village and parish. I had imaginations about my future, but my dreams were simple and centered around my little village. I wanted to be a farmer, a successful one, to earn lots of money from my bountiful crops, I will buy more land, build a nice house, own a car, get married and live happily ever after.

Yes, it was a fairy tale dream. It made me happy and hopeful every time I imagined this perfect life of my future.

But one day, all my dreams were broken. God has another plan for me, He called, and I said yes. So no land, no farm, no house, no married life. But I believe this vocation will lead me to a happily-ever-after life after all.

My vocation has taken me far away from the village and country where I thought I would live for the whole of my life. I’ve worked in and visited over 23 countries, taken on roles and responsibilities far beyond what I thought I was capable of, and been stretched in ways beyond what I thought was possible for me. My life has been so much beyond what I could have imagined. It is not the simple life I had planned, but it is a full life.

I do still wonder and think about the simple farmer’s life I used to dream about so often.

I once read in Fulton Sheen’s book ‘Treasure in Clay’, he wrote:

"Each priest is crucified on the vertical beam of the God-given vocation and on the horizontal beam of the simple longing of the flesh and a world that so often beckons to conformity with it.”

This resonates deeply within me, but it’s true not just for priests - I think it is applicable to all of us.

We all have our own plans for our lives. But God also has plans for us and often, His plans are very different from our own. However, I believe His plans are perfect for us because unlike our own plans which are focused only on the current life, His plans are always focused on leading us to eternal life.

“Not my will, but Thy will be done.”

Let these words from today’s reading be our daily spiritual mantra: "Behold, I come to do your will, O God.”

Amen.


Comments

Post a Comment

Read

Homily: August 10, 2026, Monday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Cheerful giver)

-
 “God Loves a Cheerful Giver” St. Paul tells us today: “Each must do as already determined, without sadness or compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” When I was just a small boy, I would enjoy being out of the house and on our farm to play with my friends. However, very often and almost always right in the middle of an exciting game with them, I would suddenly hear my mother calling out to me. She would shout for me from the house, “Nivin, come here! Cut some firewood”, “Dehusk two coconuts”, “Go feed the chickens” or “Go take care of the cows”. There would always be something she wanted me to do, there would always be a chore that needed to be done. And it had to always happen at the best part of the game. I didn’t have much choice, I would do what she asked but I always with a grumpy face, unwillingly, unhappily and with lots of complaining in my heart. I was never a cheerful giver. Thankfully I have grown and changed over the years. Yet unfortunately, the change is not com...
Read more

Homily: August 11, 2026, Tuesday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Sweet as Honey)

-
 “Feed your belly and fill your stomach with this scroll I am giving you.” Ezekiel tells us, “I ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.” Sweet as honey! Is that really how we experience the Word of God? For many of us, the Word of God can actually be very challenging. It corrects us, directs our conduct, and forms us in Christian discipline. Beginning with the Ten Commandments, we hear many “You shall nots.” Do not do this. Do not do that. Forgive your enemies. Love those who hurt you. Be faithful. Be honest. Carry your cross. Deny yourself. Sometimes God's Word may feel less like honey and more like medicine—something good for us, but not always pleasant to take. So was Ezekiel simply using beautiful symbolic language when he said that God's Word was sweet as honey? Our responsorial psalm today tells us the same thing: “In the way of your decrees I rejoice.” “How sweet to my taste is your promise!” And again, “The law of your mouth is to me more precious than thousan...
Read more

Homily: August 8, 2026, Saturday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time (Small Faith)

-
 “The rash man has no integrity; but the just man, because of his faith, shall live.” That is a beautiful statement from the prophet Habakkuk: the just man, because of his faith, shall live. In other words, to truly live, we need faith. And the good news is that we do not need an extraordinary amount of faith to begin. Jesus tells us that if we have faith even the size of a mustard seed, amazing things can happen. A mustard seed is very small, but when it is planted, it grows. Faith is the same way. God does not ask us to begin with perfect faith. He asks us to trust Him with the little faith we have and allow Him to make it grow. Jesus wanted His disciples to grow in faith, faith in Him, faith in the gifts God had given them, and faith in His promises. At the beginning, the disciples were often afraid and uncertain. They doubted. They misunderstood Jesus. Sometimes they even failed Him. But Jesus never gave up on them. He continued to strengthen their faith. Eventually, He could t...
Read more

Homily: August 10, 2022, Feast of Saint Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr

-
 “The Father will honor whoever serves me”. I have shared before, that I was the favorite grandchild of my paternal grandfather. He had 10 children and 50 grandchildren. Among all, he loved me the most because he believed I have a perfect green thumb. He was a man who valued planting and farming. Whenever he got a seed or seedling, he would ask me to plant it for him. He believed that whatever I sowed, would reap abundant fruits. And grandpa would bless me specially, even on his last days, he gave only me his final blessings. I never thought much about the simple farming life but had dreamed about being a rich and successful farmer. Although that dream did not come true, I have never stopped planting and gardening. Both the first reading and gospel passage today are about planting: seeds, sowing, reaping, harvesting and producing fruit. During the time of Jesus, one of the major occupations of people were farming. Many of us here are from farming families too. To till the land is a...
Read more

Homily: June 6, 2023, Tuesday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time (Love& Honor).

-
 An evil report he shall not fear; his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD. His heart is steadfast; he shall not fear till he looks down upon his foes. This is our responsorial psalm today, in response to the first reading we heard about Tobit and his wife, arguing over a goat which he thought was stolen. Tobit was a righteous man, faithful to God all the days of his life. The Israelites were living in exile under oppression and Tobit became blind and dependent on his wife's work. His kinsmen grieved at his condition, but Tobit did not lose his faith in God. He also did not lose his integrity and moral values. He did not forget his obligation to be steadfast in God’s laws. At every wedding, we witness bridal couples making their vows to each other and promising to be faithful to each other ‘in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, to love and honor each other all the days of their life’. What a beautiful way to seal love for the other! What a courageous way to assure co...
Read more

Homily: May 11, 2024, saturday of the sixth week of Easter (In Jesus' name).

-
"Whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give you." Whenever you pray for a specific intention, do you ask in your own name or do you ask in Jesus’ name? I pondered this as I prepared this homily. Most of my prayers are directed to Jesus, so I would end off like a normal conversation. But now Jesus is advising us in today’s Gospel, "…ask the Father in my name…” It is as if Jesus is telling us to write an appeal letter to God, the Father, and to sign off in Jesus’ name, not our own name. Wow! He is simply saying, use His name! Of course, His Father would never deny Him of anything, because He is the obedient and beloved Son. Every second Saturday during our healing services, Tim and Graeson will always conclude their prayers with “In Jesus’ name we pray.” And thus we see so many miraculous healings from the services. The Church also prays the same way. Holy Mass is the perfect sacrifice we offer to God the Father through Jesus Christ the Son. Listen to the prayers...
Read more

Homily: June 9, 2026, Tuesday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time (Shine-Light)

-
“Lord, let your face shine on us.” Isn’t this a beautiful prayer in today’s Responsorial Psalm. We are asking not simply for blessings, but for God Himself, for Him to look at us lovingly from above, for His glory to shine on us, not away from us. It is a prayer asking for God to be present to us, to love us, to desire us despite our sinfulness. And truly, God is always present, totally loves and forever desires us. In the Gospel, Jesus tells us: “You are the light of the world.”  We know we are not the source of light, but we can reflect light. God is light, when God’s face shine on us, we become His beacon of light too. In the Book of Exodus, after Moses spoke with God on the mountain, his face shone so brightly that people could hardly look at him. Similarly, when we live constantly in the presence of God, we too will begin to radiate peace, joy, love and holiness. How do we live in the presence of God? Very simply, spend time before the Holy Eucharist, read the Bible, receive t...
Read more

Homily: November 27, 2023, Monday of the Thirty-fourth Week in Ordinary Time (Fear of the Lord)

-
 “In any question of wisdom or prudence that the king posed to them, he found them ten times better than all the magicians and enchanters in his kingdom.” One of my favorite books in the Old Testament is the book of Daniel. The stories of Daniel and his friends inspire me a lot. I enjoy reading how God was always with them and blessed them with great wisdom and a unique gift in interpreting visions and dreams. In today’s first reading, we see how King Nebuchadnezzar tested and then invited these three young men, Daniel and his two friends, to serve him. It was an honor and seen as a great fortune to be trusted by the King, to eat and converse with him while all other Israelites were living as slaves. But Daniel and his friends did not once forget the God of their ancestors. Even though they had privileges from the King, they did not disobey God’s laws. They feared the Lord in all their days, they loved God in all their ways. And for that, they had great wisdom and understanding. An...
Read more

Homily: May 20, 2026 Holy Family School Graduation Mass

-
 We just heard the first reading from Isaiah: “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles.” Today is a wonderful milestone in your life. You must be so eager to go out and soar on wings like eagles!! But note what is the condition before this line: “Those who hope in the Lord…” Do you remember how it was when you first came to Holy Family School? Some of you came when you were tiny kids. Some of you could not even speak English. Many of you must have been anxious because everything was new to you, teachers and classmates, rules and environment… But over time, days, months and years passed, this school has become your second home. These hallways hold many memories for every one of you: laughter, friendships, victories, even tears, fears and disappointments. There might have been times when you thought you would never make it through. But you did, you got through, you are here now, celebrating the fact that you did not give up, you kept ...
Read more

Homily: June 14, 2023, Wednesday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time (Smallest Letter)

-
 Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law. What is the smallest letter of the law? In my home diocese in India, the church belongs to the Syro-Malabar tradition and our liturgy is celebrated differently from the Roman rite we celebrate here. The liturgical language used is East Syriac. Syriac is very similar to Aramaic, the language spoken by Jesus and His disciples. Both languages share the same alphabet, and within it, the smallest letter is the Yod (^), which resembles a small upside-down "V". One of our seminarian friends was nicknamed "Yod" because of his small physical stature.  Despite its size, this letter holds great significance in the language. Yod is used to form all the other letters, and since the Jewish tradition holds that God uses all the letters as the building blocks of creation, Yod points to God's omnipresence. And creation is natural law. So when Je...
Read more