THE Solemnity
of the Transfiguration of the Lord somehow
reminds us that there is a forever. When Christ
transfigured himself
before his three apostles Peter, James and John, he tried
to reassure
them not to worry about what was going to happen to him
on the
following days.
Yes, there
would be extreme suffering that would end in
Christ’s very miserable death on the cross. But all this
would be
nothing compared to what would happen after his death.
And with his
resurrection, there would be life everlasting—a forever.
This forever is
actually meant for all of us also, since
we have been made in God’s image and likeness. Even if we
damaged that
original divine image in ourselves, that image has been
repaired by
Christ himself who showed us how to handle precisely our
damaged
condition.
This
reassurance of our eternal life with God should lead
us not to be afraid to take up commitments in our life
here on earth.
Despite our limitations, not to mention our sins and
mistakes, we can
still take those commitments because God will provide us
with
everything that we need to carry them out.
We should
banish whatever fear we have of making
commitments and of eternal life itself. Let’s keep our
faith in Christ
strong, and continue to boost our hope in achieving the
promises of
Christ for all of us, in spite of whatever.
In fact, by
taking up commitments we would be showing the
strength of our faith, hope and love in God and in
others. We would be
willing to undertake an adventure, cruising uncharted
seas and
exploring the dark side of the moon, if need be.
For sure, we
are capable of entering into a commitment,
because we have both the intelligence and will that will
enable us to
know what we are committing ourselves into and to want it
for good or
for a time, irrespective of the changing circumstances
and
developments that may be propitious or not to us.
Entering into
commitment can only show determination on
the part of the one assuming it, a determination that can
only spring
from love, from one’s self-giving to another.
It is a promise
that is taken very seriously, just like
what a marrying couple would promise to each other on
their wedding
day—“to have and to hold, from this day forward, for
better, for
worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health,
until death
do us part.”
As such, a commitment
can truly be considered as proper
when it is inspired by God’s love, since it is God’s love
that is its
source and pattern. God is always faithful to us, as can
be gleaned
from the Book of Lamentations:
“The steadfast
love of the Lord never ceases. His mercies
never come to an end. They are new every morning. Great
is your
faithfulness.” (3,22-23)
And even if we
are unfaithful to God, God will still be
faithful to us, as St. Paul tells us in his Letter to the
Romans:
“What if some were unfaithful? Does their faithlessness
nullify the
faithfulness of God?” (3,3)
We need to
inculcate this sense of commitment among the
youth since they are the ones most affected by the
current prevailing
environment of disloyalty, infidelity and promiscuity.
Some have gone
to the extent of equating being non-committed with being
free, when in
fact being non-committed can only make them held captive
and enslaved
by self-seeking forces.
If entered into
out of love of God, there will never be
regrets. Even if the outcome may appear to be
disadvantageous, such
disadvantage will only be apparent and would only be so
if seen in
purely human and worldly terms. In the eyes of God, such
commitment
can only be good to us irrespective of worldly and
temporal
consequences.
Taking up a
commitment is proof of our belief in the forever.
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