For months now, most of us have been staying at home - voluntarily because we were required to work from home or involuntarily because sadly we became jobless, a casualty of the pandemic. Travel was restricted. Borders were closed. Doors were shut. Except for the frontliners, we have been confined in smaller spaces than what we have been used to.
Given our current scenario, the first part of the reading is so beautifully poignant, like the words are being spoken to us by a close friend whom we have not seen for a long time. Apostle Paul said and I quote, "I am grateful to God-whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did - when I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. Recalling your tears, I long to see you that I may be filled with joy".
And just like during his time when most of the followers of Jesus suffered because of their faith, Paul's words are as powerful now as then, reminding us that God gave us a spirit of power and love and self-discipline, and not a spirit of cowardice.
With this knowledge, we can be confident that we will overcome this trial because of God's grace. In the midst of terrible pain, of anxiety, of not knowing when this will finally end, we see God's light, each time illuminating more brightly, when we live in gratitude and when we encourage one another.
Reflection on 2 Timothy 1:1-18 by Kristine Gay Garcia
(Listen to the Podcast here)
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