The Life that is Not Mine

If the Lord asks of us all our wealth and assets, if He asks us to sell everything we possess and then follow Him just as He told the rich young man, what would our response be? Would we, in the first place, take Him and His word seriously enough to believe He really is asking this of us? Would we, after a clear confirmation of His message, obediently and trustingly do as we were told? Can we really part with our comfort, luxuries, wealth and financial stability? What excuses would we use to justify our reluctance?

If the Lord asks of us our passion, our hobbies, the very things we love so dearly in our lives, even our dear ones, would we surrender them all to Him like Abraham surrendered His beloved son, Isaac, with no questions asked, no negotiation initiated and without any hesitation or resistance?

If the Lord asks of us to renounce every bit of the lifestyle we have worked hard to establish and enjoy, like how He "messed up" Saul's life through and through, to live in the direct opposite of how we have grown accustomed to and take as our very own definition of who we are as an individual entity, would we leave behind our precious life to live the new life the Lord asks us to?

If the Lord asks, who are we to say "no" since all that we are, all that we have and will ever have, comes from the one and only Source, which is this same Lord Himself? Are not our bare lives His gift to us, just as every breath that sustains us from one second to the next, our passions, wealth, emotions, our faculties of thinking and speech, our families, our clothes, our possessions, our gifts and talents, our skills and knowledge, our faith and vocation? If He asks, can we say "no" to the One who first gave all these to us out of no merit of ours but solely because He loves us even before He made the earth? Can we, who have no control over our lives since it was not ours to begin with, deny Him anything He asks; He who alone decides the time of our coming and going, He who alone knows what satisfies our longing for a fulfilling life since it was He who first determined our unique purposes long before we came to the awareness of who we are?

Even if we had everything removed from us and we are reduced to an absolute nothing, is not this nothingness the reality of who we are and what we are, had we for a moment not survived and relied on God's infinite Mercy, Love and Providence? Yet, He raised us much higher, beyond our reality, to give us the identity of being a child of the Most High God, promising that whatever we lose on earth for His Name's sake is a worthy exchange for the ultimate gift of eternal life and perfect union with our God. What, then, would we keep and hold on to and what would we let go of? Would you not let go entirely of your life if it were to win you the guaranteed prize of unending joy? It will be a continuous experience of great struggles but let us, determinedly, lovingly, willingly and in hope... tread along on the path less travelled.

The music that has accompanied me non stop while blogging, instrumental in inspiring me... 

24 June 2011, Friday
11.25pm