A reading from the gospel according to John 14:1-6:
1 Jesus said to his disciples: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me.
2 In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If there were not, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you?
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be.
4 Where I am going you know the way.”
5 Thomas said to him, “Master, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?”
6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
Reflection: Why are you troubled?
In our gospel above, Jesus gives comforting words to His apostles who were troubled about His impending death. They have considered Him as the Messiah and they have put their hopes on Him. Now, they are about to lose Him and that their own life might even be in danger. Jesus understands their emotional condition and He wanted to uplift their spirit, reminding them that they have a special place in heaven.
Like the apostles, we too are troubled so much about so many things including unmet expectations and unfounded fear. The fact is that all of us have problems which are either big or small depending on our perspective and situation. A problem maybe big to one person but that same problem is small to another. Take the problem of money or salary for that matter. One person is worried that his salary is too small but another person maybe dreaming of that same amount as his salary. Another common problem of people is fear of the unknown such as death and losing a loved one. Some men and women are forever jealous of their partner because one day, they might lose them to another person. The point is, let us learn to look at our problems with the right perspective, reminding ourselves that we have an almighty God who is bigger than our biggest problems.
A life anchored on a deep relationship with Jesus is definitely not full of worries or troubles. If we truly believe in Jesus, we won’t be troubled about death because we know He has prepared a mansion for us in heaven. We will not worry about what to eat or what to wear because we are assured of His divine provision (Matthew 6:31). We will then learn to live joyfully and at peace knowing that our master is a good shepherd who will lead us unto the right path to green pastures. Let us have faith in Him and in the Father.
