October 29, 2023
Sunday Nomba 30 for Ordinary Time (Year A)
Readings for Today
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“Make you love di Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. Na dis be di greatest commandment and di first one. Di second one be like am: Make you love your neighbour as you love yourself. Di whole Law and di Prophets depend on dese two commandments.” Matthew 22:37–40
Think about di plenty things wey you dey desire for life. Wetin go dey for dat list? Maybe plenty good things go dey inside, like strong bond for family, good health, happy life, good friends, and enough money to meet your needs without fear. Maybe other things go dey inside too, like success for your work, fine holidays, new house, and exciting adventures for life. If you wan write dis kind list, and you start with di thing wey you desire pass every other thing, wetin go come first? All of us fit know wetin suppose come first, but if you honestly check wetin your heart dey desire right now, wetin go dey di top of dat list?
As e suppose be, di first and greatest desire of our souls suppose be to follow di two greatest commandments. Above every other thing, you go desire to love God with all your heart, soul and mind, and love your neighbour as you love yourself. Na dis be di deepest desire of your heart?
One important thing wey we need to understand be say no be just most of our heart, soul and mind we suppose take love God. No be to love Am with 51% and then allow ourselves share di other 49% give other things wey we love. No, 100% of our love must go to God. Na God alone must be di One wey we give all our love.
If you give God 100% of your love, wetin go remain for you to give other people? Di wonderful thing about our love for God be say di more love we give God, di more love we get to give other people. When we give God our love, He no dey collect am from us come selfishly keep am for Himself, as if He dey jealous and no wan share us with anybody. Instead, to love God dey change our ability to love, so tey we come get even more love than we get before. We be creatures wey get limit, and our ability to love get limit too. God no get limit, and His love no get limit. So, when we give God our love wey get limit, we receive His love wey no get limit in return. Dis love fit then overflow from our lives, and we fit share am without holding any back.
So make we go back to di question we first ask: You love God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind? If you do, e mean say every part of who you be dey fully inside di mind and will of God. E mean say you dey always try to understand God and everything wey He don reveal to you. E mean say you dey try to understand His perfect will for you every day of your life. E mean say na only wetin God want you dey choose, and you dey do am with strong desire, zeal and devotion. E mean say you dey always pay attention to God, you dey respond to di gentle ways wey His grace dey move you, and you dey allow Am lead you every moment of every day of your life. Dat na great calling! But na di calling wey you don receive. Na only then you go dey love yourself with di love of God, as you open yourself to di love wey He dey pour out, and na only then you go fit be instrument of God’s love to di people around you.
Today, reflect on di great and firm calling wey you don receive to love God with every part of your being. Your love must take over your whole life. E must be complete, without hesitation. E go require say you sacrifice your whole life, completely cleanse yourself of your sins, reject every form of selfishness, and get heart wey open to di power without limit wey God’s touch get to change you. Because God command dis, e dey possible. E dey possible to become great saint. No aim for anything less. No ever give up on dis great calling, and know say na di only way to get di fulfilment for life wey you deeply desire.
My loving Lord, You don give me everything, and You dey ask me to give You everything in return. Abeg, help me understand Your perfect love and choose am with all my strength. I truly love You, my dear Lord. Help me love You with everything wey I be. Jesus, na You I trust.
More Reflections on the Gospel
Reflection Dem about God im Mercy
Meditations on Scripture for Ordinary Time
