GRACE.IS...THE AMOUNT OF LIGHT IN OUR SOULS - POPE FRANCIS

It was raining very heavily yesterday morning when I woke up. I had been feeling very tired these past few weeks and the urge to snuggle under my blanket and sleep a few more hours was almost too tempting. I am so thankful to God I did not - for the mass homily by Rev. Fr. Jacob Arimpoor V.C. not only woke me up physically but woke my heart up! Fr. Jacob was just ordained as a Vincentian priest in December 2013 and is now part of our Divine family in Divine Retreat Centre. 

Have you ever felt that no matter however much you succeed and attain goals in your life, somehow it just is not enough? There is a yearning, an "emptiness" that somehow is not filled? Let me paraphrase some points of Fr. Jacob's touching homily from memory that captured my heart:

• "We are Christians. Every one of us who is baptized has the Grace of God in us. The Word of God says, "God created man and blew His Breath in him." (cf. Genesis 2:7)  All of us have God's Grace in us when we were baptized. "Do you realize God's Grace is already in you? What have you done with God's Grace in you? Touch the lives of others!"

• "The one mission every Christian baptized is given is to make Christ known to others. We are called to reach out to others. If we do not listen to God's Call, there will always be an emptiness in us. Why? It is because God made us for His mission. He did not give us His Grace to cling to it for ourselves. Remember the 'Parable of the Three Servants'? (Matthew 25:14-30) The servant with the one talent did not do anything really wrong - after all he did not steal the talent. Yet, he did not seek to make more talents from what his master gave him. 'Am I doing that  - not sharing God's Grace in me with others?'"

• "'Are  you listening to God?' If you are not, you will never achieve true happiness in life. You will always have an 'emptiness' that can never be filled. It is only when we live our Christian mission in life - why God made us - that we find joy and peace in our lives."

Well, these three points really made me reflect of my own life. I had worked 16 years in the corporate world and I was successful in my field. I remember many people I knew who would comment how lucky I was due to the extensive international business travel I did. Yet, with all the success, I know my heart was yearning for something intangible - at that time I did not know what my heart yearned for. It was essentially my soul wanting me to respond to God. I was immersed in worldly goals.

I was in the international corporate sales management field - hence achieving sales targets was always crucial. As those in sales know, the company will never allow a sales team to rest on its laurels of a great achievement. Every year, the targets will be set higher. I realized one thing as I was climbing up this ladder of corporate success. My job became my identity. I did not have quality time for my own life as more and more projects would be given to me as I was successful in managing and achieving results. Yet quality time for family, friends, especially for myself - to do things that brought me personal joy and satisfaction - was difficult to balance. I felt my job was not listening to my soul - instead it was owning it! What woke me up to the importance of family and loved ones was the sudden death of my second eldest sister. I remember vividly during the funeral wishing I had spent more time with her and to show her how much I loved her. But I made a promise to myself that day - that my parents and my loved ones and doing good would always be more important to me than worldly personal success.

In times of adversity, God opens the eyes of our heart. For me, through my sister's death, I earnestly questioned what my life was all about. It was about six months later that I attended my first Divine retreat. It is then, when I was freed of the burdens and pain in my heart after a beautiful confession, that I clearly heard and understood Jesus' Call to me - my life is His! I continued in my career for another 6 years. Many of us are doing really well in life - great jobs, high salaries, expensive cars and the freedom to go for holidays wherever we want. One question needs to be asked and truly answered - "Do I ever have time to listen to Jesus? Am I constantly aware of His Presence in my life?" In our human ego, we believe it is through our human skills, abilities and talents that we have succeeded. It is not so as God reminds us - "I alone know the plans I have for you, plans to bring you prosperity and not disaster, plans to bring about the the future you hope for." (Jeremiah 29:11)  We take for granted or are not aware of God's Grace in us that makes all this blessings and successes possible.  

Do not procrastinate in answering God's Call! It is easy to put our career and family life first - but that is wrong. We are created for God by God. God has to be FIRST!  Our only priority is to do God's Will in our lives so that when our short earthly life ends, we can stand at Heaven's gates knowing we did our best answering Christ's Call! God's Grace will help us balance all aspects of our life.

Fr. Mathew Naickomparambil V.C.

Fr. Augustine Vallooran V.C. (left) & Fr. Jacob Arimpoor V.C. (right)

When we are open to God's Grace in us, He uses us to reach out to others. I used to be truly amazed in my early years here feeling the great sense of peace and joy whenever I was in the presence and talking to Fr. Mathew Naickomparambil V.C. (Spearhead of Divine-Potta Ministry) and Fr. Augustine Vallooran V.C. (Director - Divine Retreat Centre). How was it possible? There were days I would feel stressed and worked up but the moment I was in their presence, it would all just literally flow out of me - and I would be calm and at peace. Often, I had not even discussed what I was feeling! Well, I have been here 10 years now and I still experience it until today. It is not just me - so many people overseas and here in India have had these same personal experiences. What is it? It is definitely what Fr. Jacob said! Fr. Mathew and Fr. Augustine are fully aware of God's Grace in them and their only mission in life is to share Christ with others every moment of their lives. Of course, they are not perfect human beings - none of us are. But their capacity to truly give their life fully in humility and joy for others and to live for Jesus deeply touches the lives of those who know them. Pope Francis said it best, "Grace is not part of consciousness; it is the amount of light in our souls, not knowledge nor reason."

I thank Fr. Jacob for his illuminating homily at Friday's Holy Mass which has inspired me to write this post. I pray that each of us will NOT take Jesus for granted. Let us with open hearts answer God's Call. Let us live each day fully for Jesus. And let us touch the lives of others with the Grace of God in us!

For the first time today, I viewed the YouTube music video below - "LIFESONG" by Casting Crown - which truly affirmed what my heart felt during the homily. May it touch yours too!

"Spread love everywhere you go. 

Let no  one ever come to you without leaving happier."

Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta