Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 29 October 2025 Wednesday in the Thirtieth Week of Ordinary Time, Year I Romans 8:26-30 <*[[[[>< + ><]]]]*> Luke 13:22-30
Photo by author, St. Paul Renewal Center, Alfonso, Cavite, August 2019.
Brothers and sisters: The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes with inexpressible groanings (Romans 8:26).
Just like now, dear Jesus, so many things are in my heart, in my mind; there are times I like to pray on things I feel too difficult to express as if too deep for words; even my writing could not work except to feel assuredly of your loving presence, of your warm company; there are people and situations too I just hold in my hands before you because I can't find words to tell you about them... there are times lately I not only forget things and persons but sometimes can't even figure out what's going on in my life that has become like a vast expanse of ocean or field with dark clouds overlapping with lights of the setting sun; O Jesus, you know what's in my heart: just let me feel you, your joy and fullness and life!
“We know all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).
If there is one thing
I pray now,
let me know you more,
Jesus so I can love you more
and follow you more
closely; you know everything,
Lord Jesus while I know nothing
at all!
Keep searching my heart
so I may find you
among those I take
for granted,
find you in simple persons
and things that do not
interest me,
most especially
find you in
everyone
in order to find my way
to you!
Amen.
Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Our Lady of Fatima University
Valenzuela City
Photo by author, Cabo de Roca, Pundaquit, Zambales, 17 May 2025.
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 28 October 2025 Tuesday, Feast of St. Simon & St. Jude, Apostles Ephesians 2:19-22 ><))))*> + ><))))*> + ><))))*> Luke 6:12-16
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2025.
Brothers and sisters: You are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones and members of the household of God built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone. Through him the whole structure is held together and grows into a temple sacred in the Lord; in him you are also being built together into a dwelling place of God in the Spirit (Ephesians 2:19-22).
How lovely to hear those words of St. Paul in these times of great divisions among us not only in politics but in almost every topic! What is most painful, O Lord Jesus Christ is how some among us have become numb and callous of each other, unmindful of things they say especially of those suffering and in pain; with the little cellphone each of us holding so addictively the whole day, we have created our own self-centered world totally unmindful of others.
On this Feast of your two great Apostles, St. Simon and St. Jude who were poles apart in their differences as persons and backgrounds, may we realize that we are not "strangers and sojourners" but are" fellow citizens", and "members of the household of God" in you, Jesus Christ who is at the center of this household as cornerstone.
Help us, Lord Jesus, to imitate Sts. Simon and Jude who built up your Church, your household of God here on earth; fill our hearts with the zeal and ardent love for you and your Church like Simon called the Zealot: in this time when Catholics in the country are declining in numbers as well as in professing their faith, may we have the enthusiasm to make you known, Jesus, in our loving actions of witnessing; grant us also the strength, clarity and courage like that of St. Jude Thaddeus in dealing with the many contradictions of the world we live in today as Catholics and Christians: "But you, beloved, build yourselves up on your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit; keep yourselves in the love of God; wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. And convince some, who doubt..." (Jude 20-22).
Bless us, dearest Jesus, through the help St. Simon and St. Jude, to rediscover the beauty of our Christian faith and of our Catholic Church by working hard to build it up without tiring through our silent and peaceful witnessing of the Gospel. Amen. Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Our Lady of Fatima University Valenzuela City
Lord My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul, 26 October 2025 Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C Sirach 35:12-14, 16-18 ><}}}}*> 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18 ><}}}}*> Luke 18:9-14
Photo by author, Alberione Center, Araneta Ave., QC, 11 September 2025.
We got our inspiration anew for this Sunday’s reflection from the blog of Sr. Renee Yann, RSM whom we follow at WordPress (https://lavishmercy.com/2025/10/18/pride-of-place-2/). Her blogs are so wonderfully written with reflections so deep, inspiring and uplifting.
In her recent blog, Sr. Renee tells of their parishioner they fondly called “Mamie” who sat on the same seat in their church they called “Pride of Place” for forty years until her death. And for a good reason. Despite her many trials and sufferings in life, Mamie never failed in helping those in need in their community.
Photo by author, Carmel of the Holy Family Monastery, Guiguinto, Bulacan, 25 September 2025.
As told by Sr. Renee’s dad, Mamie had always sat in the same pew through the Depression as she struggled to keep her grocery opened; after the death of her husband in an accident, Mamie never missed their Sunday Masses seated at the same spot – in fact, she was at the same pew on a Sunday Mass when her son was killed at Pearl Harbor. It was actually their community who “proudly awarded” the seat as a “pride of place” to Mamie following her life of Christian witnessing.
“Pride of Place” isn’t always something physical like a pew in church. More often it’s a moral or spiritual position that’s granted to us by others after we pay moral dues. These dues include trustworthiness, sacrifice, contribution, and wisdom…“Pride of Place” doesn’t come automatically with power or position. It comes with respect. Unfortunately, not every parent, boss, teacher, pastor, elder, president, or champion deserves it. It must be earned and kept as a trust. (https://lavishmercy.com/2025/10/18/pride-of-place-2/).
The story reminded me of our own “pride of place” in the church, of people always occupying the same pew or spot during the Mass that they are amazed how we priests get to know them simply with their “seating arrangement” like their coming late or being absent!
Photo by author, Carmel of the Holy Family Monastery, Guiguinto, Bulacan, 25 September 2025.
But, what struck me most with Sr. Renee’s piece is the spiritual meaning of “pride of place” which refers actually not to where we sit but where we stand. That standing is more than physical but spiritual and moral in nature. Where we stand is about our stance or conviction not only on issues but about our faith and relationship with God expressed in our dealings with others exactly what our gospel tells us this Sunday.
“Two people went to the temple area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself, ‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity — greedy, dishonest, adulterous —- or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.’ But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed, ‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’ I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former; for whomever exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted” (Luke 18:10-14).
Painting by French artist James Tissot, “The Pharisee and the Tax Collector” (1886-1894) from commons.wikimedia.org.
For the second straight Sunday, we hear another teaching of Jesus about faith expressed in prayers in another parable only Luke has.
Last Sunday we reflected that to persist in prayer is not about wearing God down but of allowing our hearts to clarify our desires until we silently surrender to what God knows is best for us which is salvation or “justification”. See how we find that word again – justified – as the key to this parable at its end when Jesus declared that it was the prayer of the publican that was heard for “he went home justified”.
The object of every prayer is God because prayer is a relationship, not just a ritual. To be filled with God is what holiness is, not being sinless. In fact, holiness is finding our sinfulness before God. And that is the essence of our parable this Sunday.
That is why Jesus directs our attention in the “where” when we pray – not just the location when we pray but our “place” in that relationship with God who is our very foundation. When all we see is our self in prayer like in any relationship, it means it is a monologue, a one-way street. Worst, it is an indication of the absence of God, even of others because the pray-er is so preoccupied with his or her very self!
Photo by the author at the Wall of Jerusalem, May 2017.
The Pharisee was clearly not in God even if he were in front of the temple. His very self was very far from God and all he had was his bloated ego. He may be a very pious person but not really good at all for he has no space for God and for others. He is a very closed man without any room for others. Remember, Luke said that “Jesus addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else” (Lk.18:9).
The tax collector, on the other hand, may be physically far outside the temple but was the one actually nearest to God with his self-acceptance and admission of sins, of his need for God. He was closest to God because he was more open with God and with others by admitting his true self.
Prayer is more than entering a church or a prayer room, or finding our most suitable spot or space to pray. Prayer is being one with God, one in God. Prayer is losing our very self in God. The question now is, “where are we when we pray?
I have always loved this photo by friend from GMANews, Ms. JJ Jimeno who took this while she was praying inside the UP-Diliman Adoration Chapel in May 2019; she aptly captioned it as “losing one’s head in prayer.” True!
First, we become one with God in prayer when we admit our sinfulness, when we confess our sins to him, and own them without any “ifs” and “buts”. God always comes to those who truly open themselves to him by emptying themselves of their sins and inadequacies.
The tax collector was justified in his prayer more than the Pharisee because in confessing his sins, he admitted his need for God. He knew very well his place, so unlike the Pharisee who felt God owes him so much!
Second, we are in God in prayer when we are humble and have the conviction to leave everything behind and go down with God into the lowest point because one is so confident of the efficacy of prayer like what Ben Sirach tells us in the first reading.
The one who serves God willingly is heard; his petition reaches the heaven. The prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds; it does not rest till it reaches its goal (Sirach 35:16-17).
Most often in life, friendships and relationships are kept when we are willing to take the lower stance, not necessarily admitting fault or guilt in any misunderstanding because being lowly indicates the person’s need for the other person and of one’s love to work on that relationship despite its fragility. I tell couples that when they quarrel, the first who must first make the move to greet the other person is not the guilty one but the one with most love and self to give.
Third, we are in God in prayer when there is an offering daily of one’s self to God. It is not enough to be lowly and sorry for our sins in prayer. It has to be sustained because prayer is a discipline like any sport as St. Paul tells us in the second reading, calling us to persevere and endure until the end for Jesus Christ “who shall award us with the crown of righteousness in heaven.”
We are all sinners forgiven and beloved by God. When we find our right place in God in prayer, then we also find him. And meet him. Amen. Have a blessed week ahead into November! Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City (lordmychef@gmail.com)
Photo by author, Carmel of the Holy Family Monastery, Guiguinto, Bulacan, 25 September 2025.
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 20 October 2025 Monday in the Twenty-Ninth Week of Ordinary Time, Year I Romans 4:20-25 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Luke 12:13-21
Photo by author, Jerusalem, May 2017.
Someone in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell my brother to share the inheritance with me.” He replied to him, “Friend, who appointed me as your judge and arbitrator?” (Luke 12:13-14)
Lord Jesus, I felt I am that "someone in the crowd" asking you to tell my brother to share the inheritance with me and honestly, I felt so stunned with your answer.
I was shocked and surprised, could not speak a word to explain to you my side of the story but wholly, I felt so liberated. I felt so free, finally. Because your reply was so reassuring, with you even calling me a "friend".
How foolish for us to be so engaged with material pursuits in life that never truly give us fulfillment except success which is so relative; so true are your words, Jesus: "one's life does not consist of possessions."
Lord Jesus, teach me to let go of my many possessions that actually possess me and make me unfree; instead of possessions, let me have relationships - with you in others; like Abraham, give me the grace to know you so that in knowing you, I may value the truest treasure that remains forever and ever. Amen.
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 15 October 2025 Wednesday, Memorial of St. Teresa of Avila, Virgin & Doctor of Church Romans 2:1-11 <*{{{{>< + ><}}}}*> Luke 11:42-46
Photo by author, Mt. Arayat viewed from Angeles City, Pampanga, May 2022.
Your words, O Lord Jesus are sobering... and so liberating.
You, O man, are without excuse, every one of you who passes judgment. For by the standard by which you judge another you condemn yourself, since you, the judge, do the very same things… Or do you hold his priceless kindness, forbearance, and patience in low esteem, unaware that the kindness of God would lead you to repentance? (Romans 2:1, 4)
How lovely are your words through St. Paul today, Jesus: "You, O man, are without excuse, everyone of you"... whoever you are. And that's all of us!
What a beautiful reminder in this time that when it comes to God's judgment, not one of us is any better than the other; indeed, there is no partiality in you, O Lord, because you are so kind to give each one of us to have that chance to change for the best, to be able to enter into a communion in you in prayer.
On this Memorial of St. Teresa of Avila, teach us to strive in prayers, to learn her ways of discipline and humility, of openness and trust in you so that we may enter into your very heart O Lord where only you would suffice. Amen.
St. Teresa of Avila, Pray for us!
Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Our Lady of Fatima University Valenzuela City (lordmychef@gmail.com)
Lord My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul, 12 October 2025 Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C 2 Kings 5:14-17 ><}}}}*> 2 Timothy 2:8-13 ><}}}}*> Luke 17:11-19
Photo by author, view of Israel from Mt. Nebo, Jordan, May 2019.
Our gospel setting this Sunday strikes a deep lasting impression on anyone who had been on a Holy Land pilgrimage: of those vast expanse of desert in Israel where dusty roads have been replaced by modern concrete or asphalted roads.
Perhaps the feelings remain the same today and during the time of Jesus when he and the Twelve were near the border between Samaria and Galilee, several figures who turned out to be ten lepers appeared at a distance, waving their hands to the Lord. It must have been a surprising sight, then and now, of being found in the desert. Imagine the desperation in their voices of those ten lepers, “Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!” (Lk.17:13).
Jesus right away told them to go show themselves to the priests, and as they went, they were healed. But only one—a Samaritan—returned to thank Jesus who wondered aloud: “Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” Then he said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you” (Lk.17:17-19).
“The Healing of Ten Lepers” painting by James Tissot en.wikipedia.org
Last Sunday we reflected that faith is primarily a relationship with God; hence, its powers or efficacy will work only when aligned with God and his Holy Will. We will never know how strong we have grown in faith until we get into tests and trials. That is why, the need for us to imitate the Twelve in praying to Jesus, “Increase our faith” (Lk.17:5).
We grow best in faith when we worship God with our fellow believers in the celebration of the Holy Mass especially on Sundays which is our Sabbath. More than a day of rest, Sabbath is a day of restoration to God, with others and most of all, with one’s self. It is a return to Eden, a dress rehearsal of our entry into heaven to dwell in God’s presence eternally.
This is where lies the beauty and significance of this healing of ten lepers – they were not only restored to health but restored in God, to their families, and to their community and fellow believers.
Photo by author, Jerusalem, May 2017.
Those ten lepers have never known any rest at all since getting afflicted with the disease for they were cut off from homes, worship, and community. That is why they could not get near Jesus as they have to keep their distance from everyone according to their laws in order to prevent infecting others and spreading the disease. Likewise, it was the very reason that anyone healed of leprosy or any serious sickness must first present themselves to the priests who have the sole authority to declare one has been healed and therefore may be allowed to reintegrate with their family and community or society in general. Being declared as healed of sickness like leprosy at that time meant the restoration of one’s rights to worship in the temple or synagogue especially on Sabbath.
When Jesus healed them, he restored more than just their bodies and physical health. In sending them to the priests, Jesus invited them into the wholeness of what the Sabbath really is like peace, inclusion, and dignity.
Or, salvation in short.
Sad to say, only one realized this when he returned to thank Jesus. The healed Samaritan leper knew and felt a deeper healing had taken place within him that he responded with heartfelt gratitude to God in Jesus. There was a deepening of his faith in Jesus when he decided to return to thank the Lord that also expressed his desire to enter into a relationship with Jesus.
Photo by author, Sacred Heart Novitiate, Novaliches, QC, 20 March 2025.
Whenever we thank people for their kindness no matter how little that may be, it is more than acknowledging the other person but most of all, of expressing our links with them as well as our desire to be one with them, especially with God who showers us with good things daily. That is why the Mass is also called Eucharist – from the Greek eucharistia meaning “thanksgiving”. After his skin was cleansed of leprosy in the first reading, Naaman the Syrian Army General declared before the Prophet Elisha that he would worship the Lord alone as he returned to his home with two mule-loads of Israeli soil.
Sorry to say but whenever we refuse to celebrate the Mass on Sundays, it means that we are one of those nine ungrateful lepers healed by Jesus! Don’t you feel being called like the Samaritan to return and give thanks to Jesus for the many blessings you have received this Sunday?
See how in this age of faith in a mass-mediated culture that we have become so impersonal, trusting more our gadgets and all those apps like Siri and Waze as if we have already lost faith in the human person. And God.
Photo by Mr. Nicko Timbol, Chapel of the Angel of Peace, OLFU-RISE, Valenzuela City, 03 October 2025.
We spend practically our entire days in front of all kinds of screens than with the face of a human person. Again, this sadly extends to the way we worship with many still stuck in the pandemic mode of online Masses not realizing the important and irreplaceable aspect of personal encounter of Jesus in the actual Mass with other believers.
God remains God even if we do not go to Mass every Sunday. It is us who are losing greatly whenever we skip Sunday Masses, our Sabbath. God specifically made his third commandment to “Remember to keep holy the sabbath day” because Sabbath reminds us that life itself is holy in the first place, a sharing in the life of God. What a tremendous blessing still that even if we forget God or disregard God every Sunday, Paul reminds us today of the beautiful truth and reality that “If we have died with Jesus we shall also live with him; if we persevere we shall also reign with him. But if we deny him he will deny us. If we are unfaithful he remains faithful, for he cannot deny himself” (2Tim.2:11-13).
Can you imagine that? If we are unfaithful to Jesus, he remains faithful?
Every Sunday, Jesus tells us to “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you” despite, in spite of our many sins and absences from the Sunday Masses in the past because he wants us to experience the deeper wholeness that comes with faith and gratitude as experienced by that Samaritan leper he had healed. As we continue to journey with Jesus toward Jerusalem facing many trials and sufferings along the way, he calls us to come to him in the Sunday Mass to deepen our faith by resting in his presence.
Is there a space in your life at this stage that you feel like one of those lepers, longing for healing and restoration? In the silence of this Sabbath day in our Sunday Mass, speak to Jesus especially after receiving him Body and Blood in the Holy Communion. Amen. Have a blessed week ahead! Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City (lordmychef@gmail.com).
Our Lady of Fatima University-Valenzuela, June 2025.
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 10 October 2025 Friday in the Twenty-Seventh Week of Ordinary Time, Year I Joel 1:13-15; 2:1-2 <*((((>< + ><))))*> Luke 11:15-26
Photo by Mr. Raffy Tima of GMANews in Batanes, 05 October 2018.
Your words today are so powerful, Jesus: the Prophet Joel called it "the Day of the Lord"...
Let all who dwell in the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming; yes, it is near, a day of darkness and of gloom, a day of clouds and somberness! Like dawn spreading over the mountains, a people numerous and mighty! Their like dawn has not been from of old, nor will it be after them, even to the years of distant generations (Joel 2:1-2).
What a moment of blessed desolation, Lord: tangible darkness everywhere that comes from within, that feeling of being afraid because you are calling me to return to you, O Lord; it is a blessed desolation because despite the darkness and emptiness, you are here within me, Lord when your darkness is light, your emptiness is fullness; it is blessed desolation for in the stillness and silence of losing everything, you are present, Lord, within me in every crisis, in every turmoil extending your hand to make me experience your power - "the finger of God" that make realize all good things come only from you and nothing bad could ever come from you as some in the crowd accused Jesus.
Let your day,
O Lord, come!
It is not enough that
we do not sin
but we must always
be filled with your Spirit,
always in your state of grace
so that there is no space for
evil to return and occupy us;
let us not be complacent
with your presence
and friendship, Jesus:
renew us daily in you
so we revere you daily,
ever ready
to follow you.
Amen.
Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Our Lady of Fatima University
Valenzuela City
(lordmychef@gmail.com)
Photo by Mr. Raffy Tima of GMANews, 27 October 2018.
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 09 October 2025 Thursday, Memorial of St. Denis, Bishop & Companion Martyrs Malachi 3:13-20 <*[[[[>< + ><]]]]*> Luke 11:5-13
Photo by Dra. Mai B. Dela Peña in Athens, Greece 2017.
"For lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven, when all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire, leaving them neither root nor branch, says the Lord of hosts. But for you who fear my name, there will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays" (Malachi 3:19-20).
Thank you, dearest Lord Jesus for having come and for coming again, bringing healing and wholeness to us but, still, as the Prophet Malachi had noted in his time, even today there are still many among us so tempted with pleasures and comfort, so carried away by materialism and consumerism; many of us pay lip service to the call of our faith with corrupt officials habitually invoking your name, Lord while most of us merely go through our many religious observances and devotions but empty in practice of mercy and charity.
Grant us the gift of your Holy Spirit, Jesus, in our prayers: "If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?" (Luke 11:13)
Draw us deeper, Lord Jesus Christ, into the mystery of prayer not as a ritual but as a relationship; therefore, to persist in prayer is not about wearing God down but allowing our hearts to clarify our desires until we silently surrender to what God knows as best for us; let us persist in prayers to align our will to God's Holy Will so that eventually, we knock with trust, not fear; we ask with boldness, not with bargaining; most of all, let us receive not just answers but your gift of your very SELF, Jesus! Amen.
Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Our Lady of Fatima University Valenzuela City (lordmychef@gmail.com)
Photo by Dra. Mai B. Dela Peña in Santorini, Greece 2017.
Lord My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul, 08 October 2025 Wednesday in the Twenty-Seventh Week of Ordinary Time, Year I Jonah 4:1-11 ><))))*> + ><))))*> + ><))))*> Luke 11:1-4
Photo by Mr. Nicko Timbol, Chapel of Angel of Peace, OLFU-Valenzuela, 03 October 2025.
Lord Jesus, teach me... not only to pray but most of all teach me to grow in you, to reorder my life in you by reshaping my will and desires with yours, to desire what you desire for me and for others, to open my heart than twist your arm to what I want, to know and seek what brings life, what builds community, what reflects your love and mercy.
Lord Jesus, teach me to be angry positively like you when you cleansed the temple, not like Jonah.
Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry that God did not carry out the evil he threatened against Nineveh…But the Lord asked, “Have you reason to be angry?” Then Jonah asked for death, saying, “I would be better off dead than alive.” But God said to Jonah, “Do you have reason to be angry over the plant?” “I have reason to be angry,” Jonah answered, “angry enough to die.” Then the Lord said, “You are concerned over the plant which cost you no labor and which you did not raise; it came up in one night and in one night it perished. And should I not be concerned over Nineveh, the great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who cannot distinguish their right hand from their left, not to mention the many cattle?” (Jonah 4:1, 4, 8-11)
Lord Jesus, teach me to pray so that I may trust you more, so that I may be transformed into the beloved child of the Father like you. Amen.
Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II Our Lady of Fatima University Valenzuela City (lordmychef@gmail.com)
Photo by author, Carmel of the Holy Family Monastery, Guiguinto, Bulacan, 25 September 2025.
Lord My Chef Sunday Recipe for the Soul, 05 October 2025 Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4 ><}}}}*> 2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14 ><}}}}*> Luke 17:5-10
Photo by author, San Fernando, Pampanga, 03 October 2025.
With all the news happening in our country made worse by recent calamities, most of us Filipinos can identify these days with the Prophet Habakkuk, crying out the same things to God:
How long, O Lord? I cry for help but you do not listen! I cry out to you, “Violence!” but you do not intervene. Why do you let me see ruin; why must I look at misery? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and clamorous discord (Habakkuk 1:2-3).
The book of Habakkuk does not really tell us the reasons for the prophet’s cries directed to God. But, does it really matter at all why he was crying in pain? Like Habakkuk, we know very well these days what it feels to be like him. There has always been and there will always be many situations in our personal lives and family, nation and even in the Church that provoke us to cry out to God in distress, complaining all the evil happening when he seems to be so far or not interested.
Photo by Mr. Nicko Timbol, Chapel of the Angel of Peace, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City, 03 October 2025.
Of course, it is not really the case here for Prophet Habakkuk nor with us. We do not complain and cry to someone who could not do anything to our plight; we cry, we reach out to those we trust and know can help us like family and friends. And God!
We find many of such complete trust and faith in God expressed in cries and laments in the Book of Psalms. Despairing calls, questions and petitions to God in the Psalms do not actually endanger the faith and trust of the believer but actually affirm them. That is why it is always good to pray the Psalms. Our Lord Jesus Christ himself prayed Ps. 22:1 while on the cross, crying out “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?” to express his deep faith in the Father in his darkest moments.
Habakkuk’s cry is very much similar with those found in the Psalms.
Most of all, Habakkuk teaches us today of God’s response to our cries, calling on us to trust him more than ever, in his Word because it shall be fulfilled for “it will not disappoint; it it delays, wait for it, it will surely come, it will not be late. The rash man has no integrity; but the just one, because of his faith, shall live” (Habakkuk 2:3-4).
Photo by author, San Fernando, Pampanga, 03 October 2025.
Keep in mind God’s final words to Habakkuk for it remains true to these days especially when we are going through difficulties and trials in life – “we shall live because of faith in God”! What a beautiful catch phrase especially at this time.
Recall how we never realize how deep and strong our faith is until we have crossed over through life’s many challenges, often without others even knowing what we have gone through. As we go through life, we continue to realize too how imperfect is our faith until our next problems and tests come.
That is why we need to pray daily to Jesus like the Apostles in this Sunday’s gospel, “Increase our faith” (Lk.17:5). See how Jesus explained faith to his Apostles and to us today.
First, Jesus clarified that faith cannot be quantified because its power does not lie in its “amount” that can be increased like torque in motor engine or similar devices for it to be powerful. That is why Jesus explained to the Twelve that “If you have the faith the size of a mustard seed, you would say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you” (Lk.17:6). Just a little amount of faith for as long as it is aligned with God and his plans, we can achieve great things in life.
Photo by Mr. Nicko Timbol, Chapel of the Angel of Peace, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City, 03 October 2025.
This, however, does not mean that the purpose of faith is to perform wonders which brings us to Christ’s second point about faith – it is a relationship.
Faith is for service, for love and charity that is why it can result into great wonders in our lives. That is why we mentioned earlier of faith being aligned with God, being one in God. It is a gift freely given to each one of us by God for our own good. Hence, even though faith cannot be quantified, its power can be impeded and rendered useless when we are separated from God. That is why Jesus narrated the parable of the “unprofitable servants”:
“Who among you would say to your servant who has just come from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here immediately and take your place at table’? Would he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat…You may eat and drink when I am finished’? Is he grateful to the servant because he did what was commanded? So should it be with you. When you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do'” (Luke 17:7-8, 9-10).
Many will probably find it uncomfortable that faith as a relationship is between servant and master; but, aside from the gospel milieu, it is the reality of our faith in God for we are indeed his servants working for him who is our Lord and Master.
We cannot claim anything for ourselves in this life. Everything is God’s, even our very lives, our body that many today insist as “theirs” to which they can do whatever they want including abort babies. No. We own nothing in this life and we leave everything when we die. What remains are our good works and love that still came from God!
Unlike the masters of the world who think of their own good, God is a faithful Master who thinks only of the good of his servants, of us. He does not impose on us, giving us freedom so as not to force us in doing things but act out of love like him.
Photo by Mr. Nicko Timbol, Chapel of the Angel of Peace, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City, 03 October 2025.
Separated from God, we become worthless or useless or unprofitable servants because we find meaning only in him. When we are aligned with God, faithfully obeying his will, we are able to do the seemingly impossible because it is God working in us like forgive those who have broken our trust, love someone so difficult to deal with, relieve hunger with simple acts of kindness, work on justice where the powerful exploit the weak, remain faithful to prayer even when God seems absent. These are all acts of faith that go beyond normal expectations that reveal to us the power of God, of how deep our faith can be. That faith cannot be quantified.
Truly, as God had told Habakkuk, we live because of faith. When crises and problems seem to overwhelm us, it is to God’s faithfulness we turn to with our cries with despairing overtones that are actually expressions of deep faith and trust in him.
From Paul’s letter to Timothy in the second reading this Sunday, we get our thrid point about faith: this gift of faith is our greatest treasure that we must keep and cultivate to grow deeper, to mature in us. It is this gift of faith that gives us the “spirit of power and love and self-control, not cowardice” (2Tm.1:7).
It is faith as our treasure that gives us the reason “to live on, to live for, and to die for” borrowing the thoughts of the late dissident Swiss theologian Hans Kung. It is faith that sets things right inn our lives because as it moves us closer to God, it likewise enables us to recognize others as brothers and sisters in Christ.
Recent turn of events in our country are so frustrating and yes, very tempting to resort to violent means and measures, including speaking and writing all those expletives and curses against the corrupt. It is normal to be angry but, do we have to be cruel and harsh?
Call me conservative or simply because I am a priest – but, that is what I am that is why I am very much against violence and harsh languages in the midst of all these corruption. I never tire telling people we have proven in 1986 that non-violence works. We have to try it again. However, what we missed after EDSA 86 is we separated from God. We thought we could do it our own ways. This Sunday, we are reminded of our greatest treasure as Filipinos, our gift of faith in God. Let us live in this faith in God. After all, these corruption we see and detest started in our homes, in our schools, in our hearts when we separated from God and one another. Amen. Have a blessed week ahead. Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II, Our Lady of Fatima University, Valenzuela City (lordmychef@gmail.com)
Our Lady of Fatima University Marketing Dept., June 2025.
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