The True Weather Man

Matthew 8:18-27 (NASB)

Now when Jesus saw a crowd around Him, He gave orders to depart to the other side of the sea. Then a scribe came and said to Him, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go."

Jesus said to him, "The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."

Another of the disciples said to Him, "Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father."

But Jesus said to him, "Follow Me, and allow the dead to bury their own dead."

When He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered with the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep.

And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, "Save us, Lord; we are perishing!"

He said to them, "Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?"

Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm. The men were amazed, and said, "What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?"

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My reflection for today dwells on this particular phrase: "What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?"

It astounds me without end that whenever we have a fraternity function that necessitates clear skies, I am called by my fraternity brothers to pray for good weather. I even overheard someone telling about "my" ability to keep skies clear and keep rain away, while concluding that "it always happens."

There was even this one instance where the skies were already about to pour rain over our event, until they called me to pray. The rain clouds then suddenly retreated, as though a force above us is trying its best to repel us from rain.

This is quite a humbling revelation, and as a result, my fraternity brods and sorority sisters have time and again told me to pray for good weather. After all, as they say, "it works everytime." I do not know how to feel, whether happy and blessed while basking in the thought that the people around me acknowledge my love for Christ; or feeling unworthy. I must always remember that it is not I who is causing all of this to happen; I am not the one causing the rainclouds to disappear, it's God's work.

Now, we are about to hold another fraternity-sorority function next week, and they are once again calling on me to pray for clear skies. At the moment that they were calling upon me to pray, I fell silent, and while I was just reassuring them, deep inside I felt like crying. I did not know why, but there was the yearning to really pray for my brothers and sisters.

Please join me in praying, especially since a weather predicting website suggested that that day would be quite rainy.

And please pray for me too, that I may always seek the Holy Will of God and do what He wants me to do.

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My Lord Jesus, as I strive to truly follow You, may I always depend on You, so at the hour that I truly will fulfill the call to serve You, I may always do so not because of me, but because of You.

Saint Clare of Assisi and Saint Jean de Brebeuf, pray for us.

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picture credits: http://www.familybooksandcds.com/images/jesus_calms_storm.jpg