May 11, 2009

Today's Reading: Acts 14:5-18

"...he allowed all Gentiles to go their own ways; yet, in bestowing his goodness, he did not leave himself without witness, for he gave you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, and filled you with nourishment and gladness for your hearts."

Our freedom, our free will, is the greatest gift of God to us humans. It is what makes us human. God will not manipulate our freedom in any way. And yet this freedom should not be understood as just a freedom from doing (what we like) but a far greater freedom of being, becoming the person God has intended us to be. And thus, in the reading today, Paul reminded the gentiles, particularly the Greeks who valued their freedom very much, that God has been true to them by allowing them to do whatever they want to do with their lives. Although now, with the preaching of Paul and Barnabas, they are being invited to view their freedom not merely as a freedom of doing but a freedom of being.

God did not just give us our freedom and then left us on our own. He must know (for sure as he has created us) that sometimes in our practice of our freedom, we may also make wrong decisions, wrong use of it. Again, he cannot manipulate us. Instead, he tirelessly invites us to choose the right, to choose the way of loving. And those who did could be rightly called as witnesses for Him.

In one of my reflections on the existence of good and evil in this world, I asked God why he allowed evil to exist. The only reply I got --- free will. Some people used their free will for selfish reasons so it couldn't be helped sometimes that the consequence affected other people. Then as though I was still confused, I said, "At the expense of others???" (What I meant here was, at the expense of others, God will still uphold our free will.) I still couldn't believe it. But his following response struck me --- "That's why I inspire others like you to give hope to others, to promote peace, to become a witness for me." It is only then that I realized that our free will bears a responsibility. Our responsibility is our response to this wonderful gift. Our responsibility is to use our free will to become who we should be.

In the end, this gift of free will, is a gift that should be used to give glory to the GIVER of this gift.

Have you ever asked yourself what you can do to alleviate the sufferings in this world brought about by evil ways?

Have you ever considered yourself a witness for God?