God’s Omnipresence
On Gratitude In Difficult Times
Praying with joy and gratitude can be difficult after seven months of quarantine and isolation. Discerning with the eyes of our hearts, however, we realize that we have so much to be thankful and joyful for.
The new beginnngs that each day brings, our family, our friends not only old ones but newly-found friends in social media, the ability to attend conferences in the comfort of our homes, the blessing of not having to contend with monstrous traffic jams— if we open our eyes, we realize that this pandemic has brought some positive results. Of course, the trade-off is the physical isolation and restriction, compounded by frequent migraines resulting from being in front of our tablets or computers. The bottom line, however, is that there are a lot of things to be grateful and be joyful for.
The omnipotence of a God who does not hesitate to break man-made conventions and rituals to heal and bring comfort to a man suffering from dropsy as written in the Gospel (Luke 14:1-6) is a reassurance that Jesus knows our needs even before we utter them and takes positive action even before we pray for them.
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Lord Jesus, thank You for Your constant presence reminding us of Your shepherd’s care for us in ALL circumstances. As we kneel in humble gratitude, fill our hearts with joy and inspiration as we acknowledge how blessed we are to belong in Your flock. Fill us with Your love that we may share with others whatever we have, no matter how small nor insignificant they may be—with deep gratitude and joy, in Your mighty name, Amen.
Image by NeONBRAND via Unsplash
About the Guest Author: J.M. Lumitao is a professor and past Chair of the Departments of Anatomy and Bioethics at the University of Santo Tomas (UST) Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, and a former secretary of the Southeast Asian Center for Bioethics. She is also a co-author/editor of “Beyond a Western Bioethics: Voices from the Developing World (Clinical Medical Ethics)”; author of Lector’s Guide in Proclaiming God’s Word Year A, B, C and Sa Puso ng Lumang Tipan 1, 2 and 3. She served as Lector/Commentator of the Sacred Heart Parish Shrine in the Philippines since 1989 and Head of the 4 S program (Sacred Heart Sacred Scripture Study) of the parish since 2011 to present.
