Wednesday of the 5th week of Lent
Theme: Faithful God
In the 1st reading from the Book of the prophet Daniel, we see the faithfulness of God. The decision of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego was motivated by their faith in God. They were resolute about their decision not to worship the image made by king Nebuchadnezzar. They rather opted to die instead of offending God and obeying the king. The singular action of these men, says a lot about their faith and trust in God. They willing sacrificed their lives because of their faith in God. They were all thrown into the burning fiery furnace, and God used the opportunity to prove himself, and king Nebuchadnezzar made a proclamation of faith; blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. My brothers and sisters in Christ, we are all encouraged to trust in God at all times, no matter the situation we find ourselves in life; God will always bless our faithfulness.
In the gospel reading, Jesus invites us to continue in his word to be his true disciple. Just like the action of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego in the 1st reading shows that they were true disciples of God. The question is, are we willing to pay the price for discipleship, just like the three men in today’s first reading? There is always a price to pay for our discipleship. However, the price we pay is small compared to the blessings that our discipleship attracts to us. Let us resolve during this season of Lent to accept the invitation of Christ to embrace true discipleship and pay whatever price we have to; for the sake of the kingdom.
May God grant us the grace to strive after holiness of life and do all within our power to improve on the quality of our discipleship. Peace be with you.