SURABAYA CORNER
By Ramon Martillano
A Protestant boy wanted to marry a
Catholic girl. Her parents felt it would be advisable for the
young lad to adopt the family religion. Accordingly, he began
to read Catholic literature, and attend classes taught by a
priest.
All went well until
one day the mother came home to find her daughter lying on the sofa
weeping her eyes out. "It's Paul," the girl sobbed. "There
isn't going to be any wedding." "What is the matter, my dear?
Doesn't he love you anymore?" "It isn't that," the daughter
explained. "We oversold him. Now he wants to become a
priest." (Bruno Hagspiel)
How I wish I were
that Protestant boy! Not necessarily to become a priest (and
definitely not to get married again) but to become a “fully
committed Christian” to serve Him. The boy in the story
understood fully well the true meaning of being a servant of GOD,
to the point of canceling his wedding! Can you beat that? He was
drawn and attracted by a powerful “magnet” and without hesitation
embraced the Catholic faith.
Some of us have
probably experienced sitting close to a lady in a party who sprayed
herself with a bit too much amount of perfume. After the party, it
is highly probable that you would have picked up some of the
scent. (Well, it’s good if you were with your wife or
girlfriend, otherwise you would have a lot of explaining to
do. )
The
same thing is true when we draw close to Jesus. As we sit near Him,
we will surely pick up some, hopefully all of His traits and become
a better Christian, and who knows be canonized a Saint someday! And
the longer we stay near Him, the more we will be blessed by the
Holy Spirit. So, drawn to GOD, we are blessed. Conversely,
withdrawn from GOD, the devil will surely totally devour us in no
time!
In a homily given recently, Fr. Harris from Australia said, “If we
are under the sun, we will definitely be hit by the rays of the
sun. In the same manner, if we pray before the Blessed
Sacrament, we will surely be blessed by the Lord Jesus.” When my
wife Vi and I pray before the Blessed Sacrament every morning, we
always choose that area right in front of the Blessed Sacrament
(just 2-3 feet away.) In doing so, we feel much closer to the Lord.
In fact, when I pray in our house, I feel that something is
missing. The feeling is not the same as when I pray before the
Blessed Sacrament.
In conclusion,
I believe that drawing closer to GOD (physically and spiritually)
is an act of humility,
a clear, unconditional admission that we are totally dependent upon
Him for everything. On the other hand, running away from Him is an
act of pride,
with the wrong notion that we can do everything on our own. Thus it
is said, “GOD resists the
proud, but gives grace to the humble.” (Proverbs 3:34)
Let us be drawn closer into His presence as we pray, “Draw my soul
nearer to Thy throne to love Thee, O Lord.” (Excerpts from the song
Draw Me) Amen.